What We Have
by IzumiTheMoogle
Summary: The Kyuubi is dangerous; capable of destroying nations. And there are people who want its power. Naruto Uzumaki, the Jinchuuriki, doesn't realize how far someone will go to save him from danger. Or how far his enemies will go to get his gift. -Done!-
1. His Definition of Lucky

"Naruto, if you don't shut up, I'M going to be the one that's hearing about this later…" Kakashi groaned. He grabbed the collar of the struggling blond Genin, keeping him subdued without much effort.

Naruto continued his violent contortions even though his sensei almost had him in a chokehold, yelling several curses at the Jounin.

"_The definition of the word calm probably doesn't process well in his head…" _ Kakashi thought tiredly.

The Hokage of Konohagakure sat at her desk, hands folded neatly together, just barely covering her pursed lips. As leader of the village, she was expected to keep a temperate attitude when dealing with the ninja she commanded.

But not him. Not Naruto Uzumaki. Tsunade almost had to resist the urge to send the boy hurling all the way to Sunagakure. He would have to walk back then. That would be nice. Her headache would, at the very least, diminish in intensity.

"Come on Granny Tsunade!!" Naruto pleaded through gritted teeth. Kakashi's grip on his collar had gotten tighter, making him regret wearing his orange coat, "Just one B Class mission!"

The agitated aura that suddenly surrounded Tsunade could be felt by all in the small office that enclosed them. Shizune, the overworked but appreciated assistant for the Hokage, backed up a few steps from her friend's desk, though this was all too routine. She nervously started biting her nails.

"_N-Now Lady Tsunade…" _Shizune thought apprehensively_, "Don't do anything TOO rash… Remember he's only a boy…" _ The young woman knew better than to voice her thoughts. When Tsunade was angry, annoyed, agitated, or all of the above, the slightest word in the wrong direction could send her flying off her handle.

Then her rant started.

"What do you propose I do then, Naruto?!" Tsunade yelled at the boy who stared her down unflinchingly, "All of the requested missions have been taken up, and you've already done several missions already today!!"

"Those were D missions! That's freakin' baby stuff!" Naruto yelled back at the Hokage, no longer paying heed to his being a leashed dog.

"Every… Mission… Counts!!" Tsunade said slowly, carefully annunciating each syllable, "As a ninja, you are proud to do any and every job you are assigned, whether it's a D or S mission!!"

Silence. Naruto looked down at the floor angrily. Fine. Tsunade had won this round, but Naruto would be back for more; the both of them knew that.

The occupants of the room quietly but intensely stared at Naruto, waiting for another outburst. Kakashi and Shizune heaved a silent sigh of relief when the silence prolonged.

Tsunade said nor did nothing different. Her gaze stayed upon the boy, even as Kakashi let him go, and even as he continued to glare icily at the floor of the Hokage's office.

"As for you, Kakashi," Tsunade broke the exasperated silence, "I have another S Ranked mission for you to do immediately."

Kakashi's bored demeanor morphed into a wearied one. He had already been on four. Nonetheless, his reaction was the same as ever: A sigh.

"_What a slave driver…"_ Kakashi thought once again. It seemed that everyday there were more and more S Ranks to be done. If he were his 'Eternal Rival' Maito Gai, it would be fantastic news; but he wasn't. And truth be told, he would much rather be at home reading Make-Out Paradise or Make-Out Violence. Either one would be preferable at this point. Oh well though. A ninja must do what he's told. At least, that's what the Copy Ninja kept on telling himself.

"Man, you're so lucky Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said to his teacher as they both walked out of the Hokage's Tower after Tsunade had briefed Kakashi about his mission.

"How's that?" The silver-haired Jounin inquired.

"I mean, you get to go on S Ranked missions all the time!" Naruto's blue eyes glimmered, "That would be WAY more exciting than a stupid D Ranked one…"

Kakashi chuckled, "Lucky's in the eye of the beholder Naruto. I don't do these missions because I have to…" He stopped walking as soon as the two of them were in town again and looked at his curious student, "I do them because it's my duty to Lady Tsunade and to my village. That goes for you and your C and D Ranks."

Naruto rolled his eyes, "I'd welcome a C Rank right now!"

Kakashi smiled, "That's a good attitude to have. Anyway, I have to go. I'll see you around Naruto."

"Bye sensei," Naruto said blandly as Kakashi took off in another direction. There he went again; off on another one of his exhilarating adventures. What Naruto would give to go with him!

"_How am I supposed to get Sasuke away from that creep Orochimaru if I don't go on tougher missions??" _ The blond shinobi thought as he trudged back home, "_But I have to do it… Before it's too late." _

And as Naruto walked home, as the sun set, and as Kakashi got closer to his target, everything was sound in the Leaf Village.

"Shizune!!" Tsunade called out to her ally firmly, her eyes glued to a piece of parchment she had spread on her desk.

"What is it Lady Tsunade??" Shizune said urgently as she rushed into the room.

"Get me a team of Jounin!" The Hokage barked

"W-Which ones?" Shizune asked innocently, "Do you want Gai, or-"

"I don't care!" Tsunade interrupted indignantly, "Gai, Genma, Raido, anyone! Hell, I don't even care if you get some Chuunin!" Her eyes locked with Shizune's, "Just form a team, and send them after Kakashi!!"

Shizune looked surprised, "Ka… Kakashi…? But, Lady Tsunade-"

"You know where's he's headed to, right?"

"Yes, but-"

"Then send them there! You have my permission! Tell them to only go as backup for Kakashi, and not stop or get distracted by anything!!"

"Of course!" Shizune nodded, still curious as to what could have-

Her eyes widened.

The kunoichi's gaze had wandered down to the parchment Tsunade had been fawning over earlier, and the moment it did, she shot out of the room, leaving Tsunade to herself.

On the parchment the Hokage had received only minutes earlier from a messenger bird rested a headline that didn't need an explanation:

"Suspicious Characters Spotted in Land of Rain Wearing Black Cloaks with Red Clouds."

The Akatsuki.


	2. What If It's My Fault?

"1

"1... 2... 3... 4... 5..."

The numbers steadily progressed through Naruto's mind as he watched the clouds float on by overhead. A few minutes passed.

"36...37...38...39...40..."

Ok, now it was getting ridiculous. Naruto frowned and sat up, "Why the hell am I watching clouds!?" He grumbled at himself, crossing his arms, "I should just leave that to Shikamaru..." He stood up with a slight stagger; watching clouds put him right to sleep! "_No wonder Shikamaru is so tired all the time_..." Naruto thought, perturbed at the idea of him becoming as lazy as his shadow manipulating friend.

The boy walked out of the training grounds, where he had been cloud-counting, and meandered into the village market. A low grumble in his stomach made Naruto's face crumble; food, that's what he needed. And where else to go for food?? Of course, when Naruto thought of food, he thought of ramen. So, naturally, the Ichiraku Noodle Bar was the first thing that popped into his skull when his stomach lurched unpleasantly.

"Hello there Naruto!" Ayame greeted the bar's number one customer with a gleeful smile as he sat himself down on a stool.

"Hey Ayame," Naruto said dryly, leaning on the counter, "Could I get a bowl of ramen please?"

"Of course!" The girl agreed, starting work on Naruto's food immediately.

"Where's the old man?" He said after glancing around.

"I'm afraid Father has a head cold and couldn't work today," Ayame said ruefully.

"Wow, he's never sick," Naruto responded, actually somewhat surprised.

"I know. I was shocked myself. He said he's going to be ok, but I just can't stop worrying."

"I know what you mean," Naruto said empathetically, "I'd be worried too. But all you can do is hope, you know? We're not doctors. Besides, the old man's strong, he'll pull through."

Ayame smiled, putting a steaming bowl of the usual in front of Naruto, "Yeah, I know. Thank you for having faith in him."

"No problem!" Naruto said, all while stuffing ramen in his mouth.

Ayame giggled at his whole-hog behavior with the food, "Hm?" She noticed someone else coming up to the bar, "Oh! Hello Sakura!"

"Good day Ayame," Sakura said in a friendly manner as she walked in, sitting down by Naruto.

"Fakura?" Naruto said, noodles still sticking out of his mouth, "Whut ah yo-"

Sakura put a finger up, "How about you swallow your food before you start talking, Naruto?" She said in an irritated way.

Naruto swallowed the noodles in his mouth, "Sorry," He smiled nervously, "So, what are you doing here anyway Sakura?"

The pink haired kunoichi expression became slightly more serious, "I was wondering if you had heard the news yet."

Naruto's raised eyebrow served as an indication for Sakura that he knew nothing about what she was talking about in the slightest. She sighed and rolled her eyes. However, her expression quickly reverted back to being serious.

"Apparently..." As soon as she started to talk, Naruto started to stuff his face again, still listening, "Apparently some of the... Akatsuki... You know, the band of rouge ninja that..." She paused momentarily, "That Sasuke's brother is in... Apparently some were spotted in the Land of Rain."

Naruto froze. Did she say...? Land of Rain? Isn't that where...

"I also heard from a traveling merchant in town that there was a battle between them and someone else..." Sakura continued, "I hope that their opposer walked away alright..."

CRASH!

The bowl smashed into thousands of pieces as Naruto's grip suddenly gave out. Broth and noodles were washed all over the counter, some even spilling over on Naruto's lap. Ayame gasped in fright as she heard the horrible sound. Sakura jumped up from her seat.

"Naruto!! What's your problem??" She looked at her teammate in an aghast way.

The blond shinobi didn't respond. He sat staring at the counter, his eyes wide. The briefing of Kakashi's mission suddenly washed over Naruto's mind like a fire hose. He clearly remembered Tsunade saying his mission would take place in the Land of Rain... Also... His memories flashed back to when he and Jiraiya started looking for Tsunade... Before that, Sasuke and his brother had clashed, with Itachi as the clear victor... He damaged Sasuke's mind greatly, and soon after, Naruto learned that Kakashi had fought Itachi and was bedridden because of what Itachi did to him...

What if Kakashi ran into him again?? No, wait... There was more than one... Would he have to fight both of them?? Was that the battle Sakura had just told him about?!

"Naruto! Hey Naruto!" Sakura shook Naruto's shoulder, becoming concerned when he didn't respond.

Ayame had gotten out a rag and started to clean up the mess on the counter, "Are you alright Naruto??" She asked urgently when his gaze was no longer staring into space.

He stood up.

"Naruto??" Sakura questioned. Both of the girls stared at him curiously, "What's wrong??"

"Sorry Ayame," Naruto said quickly, slapping 40 Ryo on the part of the counter that was clean, "But I can't stick around to help clean up! I owe you!" He had barely finished his sentence before he dashed away from the stand.

"Wait, where are you going?!" Sakura called out after him. This behavior was strange, even for Naruto.

"To see Granny Tsunade!" Naruto said. He wasn't even sure if he said it loud enough that Sakura could hear him. But that wasn't important at this point. He had to know if Kakashi was back, if he was safe.

"_If he got hurt because they're looking for me_..." The ninja thought angrily, "_I'm gonna be REALLY pissed off!!_"


	3. When The Heart Stops

"Whoa

"Whoa! Slow down!"

"Naruto!! What the hell?!"

"Watch where you're going kid!"

Though Konoha's 'finest' was clearly getting on the nerves of all of the Chuunin and Jounin he almost knocked over while shooting off to Tsunade's office, he didn't care. They could all chew his butt off later. Right now his only concern was making sure his sensei was alright.

"Grandma Tsunade!" Naruto threw her door open, making it collide loudly with the wall.

Tsunade looked up at Naruto with a questionable look. She was already swamped with paperwork at the moment; did he have to make it worse?

The boy sped to her desk, "Kakashi-sensei! Is he alright??" He asked urgently.

What? What was he talking about? "Kakashi...?" The Hokage repeated the Jounin's name.

"Yes, him!!"

"He's still off on his mission..." One of her eyebrows rose, "Why? ... What made you think he was hurt?"

"Sakura told me that there were members of the Akatsuki in the Land of Rain!" Naruto clearly accented the word 'Akatsuki.'

"How did she know about that?!" Tsunade asked roughly.

"She said she heard from some merchant! Anyway, she also said that there was a battle in the Land of Rain between the Akatsuki members and someone else!"

Tsunade smashed her fist down on her desk, making Naruto jump. He eyed her carefully.

"Was I too late...?" She grumbled, lashing at herself mentally.

Unfortunately for the Hokage, Naruto was listening all too well, "What do you mean too late??" He yelled dryly, fearing the worst.

Tsunade put her head in the hand that she didn't have pressed down on her suffering desk, thinking about what to do. Options... Any at all that she had. They were very few.

"Lady Hokage!!" Raido flew into the doorway of the office, making Tsunade snap her head back up into position.

Naruto's mouth fell slightly agape. Where had this guy been?? It looked like he was soaked to the bone, even though it was a sunny day outside if Naruto had ever seen one. Through Raido's scarred face, though, the young ninja could see worry and urgency. It couldn't be good.

"Raido?!" Tsunade braced herself for something she didn't want to hear, standing up.

"Ma'am, we've brought back Kakashi," Those words made Naruto's heart leap, "But we ask for your assistance, we think he needs medical attention!"

Tsunade immediately ran over to Raido, "Take me to him," she commanded seriously.

The Jounin nodded, and the two of them dashed out of the room. Naruto silently but quickly followed behind them. He knew that no one would want him in the way when they were examining Kakashi. But he had to see what the damage was.

There was a small group of Jounin and Chuunin that went out to retrieve Kakashi: Raido, Genma, Kotetsu, Izumo, and Gai, who was holding his injured friend and rival up as Tsunade and Raido approached them.

Naruto's eyes widened: his sensei looked like a different person! All down his body were cuts, bruises and blood... Yes, there was plenty of that. In fact, his vest started to drip, forming a tiny puddle underneath him. But mainly, Naruto noticed, there was a huge black and red circle on his chest... Another injury? Obviously, the flabbergasted shinobi told himself. But this one was different. This one made Naruto's stomach twist uncomfortably when he looked at it. So, he had to look away and hide himself behind a corner, holding his stomach.

It had been three hours... Or was it four? Naruto didn't know. He wasn't keeping track. His butt started getting sore, though, from sitting on the hard bench outside of Kakashi's room for the entire time, and longer.

Sakura sat across from him, nervously fidgeting with her feet. She would have been fidgeting with her fingers, but her hands were occupied by a beautiful bouquet of flowers that she had gotten from Ino before she came to the Hospital. The blond kunoichi generously gave the flowers to Sakura free of charge because of what had happened with her sensei. Sakura hoped that she could give them to Kakashi when Tsunade and the other medical ninja were done treating him.

Naruto had earlier attempted to make conversation with his teammate and love interest, but every topic just seemed to die out before it started.

"_Just open the door already_..." Naruto hoped desperately, "_Tell us he's going to be alright_..."

Another twenty minutes passed, every second seeming to go slower and slower. Naruto and Sakura's hearts stopped when the red light above his door turned off and Tsunade stepped out, wiping her forehead clean of sweat. The two Genin quickly shot up from their sitting positions and looked at their Hokage with eager and anxious eyes.

"Well?!" Naruto finally gasped when Tsunade didn't say anything.

She heaved a heavy sigh.

"Oh god..." Naruto muttered, his eyes starting to quiver.


	4. So Why Are We Still So Glum?

The silence in the hallway was eerie

The silence in the hallway was eerie. However, neither Naruto nor Sakura dared to speak after hearing Tsunade's weighted sigh. Their minds automatically assumed the worst had happened.

Finally, Tsunade spoke, "It wasn't pretty... At one point his heart actually stopped, but we got it up and running again..." She smiled tiredly at the young ninja, "If he stays in the Hospital and recovers properly, he should be fine!"

A loud gasp of relief was released from the throats of Naruto and Sakura as Tsunade uttered those words. That's all they wanted to hear. Naruto fell back on the bench, taking another breath. Sakura's knees almost buckled, and she put one hand on her heart, as if to calm it.

"Can we go in to see him?" Naruto asked eagerly.

Tsunade reluctantly shook her head, "... No. It's probably better if you didn't for a little. He probably wouldn't want his students to see him in that condition."

Naruto felt a fresh hard pang of guilt as he remembered him snooping behind Tsunade and Raido just to sneak a peak at his crippled teacher. Sakura's lightened expression darkened a little again when Tsunade said 'condition'.

"Is it really that bad...?" She asked with worry.

"Bad and... Strange," The Hokage said, searching for the right words.

"Strange?" Naruto made a face.

"Yes. Strange in the sense that I've never seen such brutal injuries of its sort. "

"What kind were they??" Sakura questioned.

"Well, it sounds crazy... But it looks like they were from an explosion."

"An explosion?!" The Genin said in unison.

Tsunade nodded, "But it doesn't look like one; it looks like there were several somewhat minor ones, and then a 'finale' of sorts. They all looked to be lethal though."

"That's so weird," Sakura said, contemplating the information, "I can't imagine Kakashi-sensei falling for a series of explosive traps."

"Yeah, he's way smarter than that!" Naruto piped in.

""I know, that's what I thought too," Tsunade said, crossing her arms, "But there's no other explanation for those wounds. I haven't gotten a chance to talk to any of the squad who went after him though, so I'm hoping they'll know."

"But it was... Definitely the Akatsuki," Naruto said in a monotone voice.

"It must have been," Tsunade said grimly, "I don't know how else Kakashi could have been that seriously injured."

"Oh!" Sakura's little yelp got everyone's sudden attention, "Lady Tsunade, could you put these in Kakashi-sensei's room?" She handed Tsunade the flowers.

"Of course," The Sannin smiled; she knew Kakashi would be embarrassed by the gift. But flattered, nonetheless. She took the flowers, "I'll put them in as soon as I go back in."

"Thank you," Sakura bowed respectfully.

"Oh, Lady Tsunade!!" A booming familiar voice could be heard coming down the hall.

The group looked to see Gai rushing down the hall; he stopped in front of Tsunade, "How's Kakashi?"

Tsunade nodded, "He should pull through with some rest, though he scared us for a while."

"Good, good..." The Green Beast nodded, "Those wounds aren't exactly typical."

"I meant to ask you about that."

"Hm?"

"Kakashi got those wounds from an Akatsuki member, right?"

Gai nodded in an upset fashion, like he didn't want to remember what happened.

"... Was it Itachi?"

The name of that Rouge caused Naruto and Sakura to stir nervously.

"... No."

Naruto and Sakura shared surprised glances with each other as Gai answered the question. They knew there were more Akatsuki, but never really thought of the threats THEY possessed.

"Then it wasn't anyone we would know?" The Hokage asked.

"No, it wasn't," Gai's gaze narrowed, "There were two of them, but only one seemed to be on the offensive. The other was just standing around. My guess is that they were partners."

"Only one fought??" Tsunade asked, an ounce of surprise in her voice. If this much damage had been caused by fighting only one of them...

"Yes. The one that did fight had the... Craziest jutsu. Or at least he must have. When we caught up with Kakashi, he was already in mid-battle. We managed to get away, but not before the enemy launched some crazy explosives... But they weren't regular ones. They were stronger. Unfortunately for Kakashi, he received almost all of the full grunt of the attacks. Some of us were hit too, but it was nothing serious."

Tsunade let this information soak in, gathering all of the facts, "I see. That explains why these wounds seemed to be much more... orderly and lethal than a regular bomb."

"I think the Akatsuki that did it had launched several attacks before as well, from what we saw of Kakashi's injuries."

"So they just attacked him because they felt like it, or what??" Naruto asked impatiently.

"I'm not sure," Gai answered, "Like I said before, we didn't arrive until mid-battle. The only one who would know that would be Kakashi, but..."

"He's not going to be conscious for at least a day," Tsunade sighed ruefully, "We can wait though. I'll be sure to ask him when he comes to."

"Sounds good," Gai nodded. He about-faced with a wave to the group, "I have to go. My team's waiting for me at the training grounds. I'll see you all later."

More silence. At this point, Sakura didn't know what to do. She obviously couldn't ask Tsunade to continue her training, what with her tending to Kakashi. And she was also too focused on her sensei's condition to think much about anything else.

Naruto, on the other hand, knew exactly what he wanted to do. He wanted to go to the Land of Rain and straight up ask those Akatsuki jerks where Itachi was. This whole ordeal had refreshed Naruto's hatred for that man.

"Naruto, Sakura..." The Hokage finally said. They both looked at her curiously, "You should both leave for a while. Walk around the village or something. Sitting here won't do anything for your sensei or for you." She made a forward motion with her hand that signaled to the Genin that they should leave.

Slowly, the two of them walked down the hall and out of the Hospital. The atmosphere outside was much cheerier than in that dreadful place, but it didn't help their moods much. Even though they knew Kakashi was going to be alright, the fact that an Akatsuki member injured him was unnerving. However, they soon parted ways.

"I'll see you later Naruto," Sakura said, attempting to sound cheery, "I have to go home and study... Lady Tsunade gives me a lot of work."

"I'll bet," Naruto chuckled, "Bye Sakura." The two waved friendly-like, and then parted. Naruto decided to mosey on over to the ramen shop to apologize to Ayame for the day before. His conscious had been rather heavy about that, among other things.

As he ducked into the bar, he was greeted by a familiar yet unexpected voice.

"Yo," A black glove rose as a sort of wave as the owner slurped down some noodles.

Naruto looked surprised, "Kankuro? What the hell are YOU doing here??"


	5. The Beginnings Of A Complication

Kankuro's smirk deepened, "And here I though mister happy-go-lucky would be glad to see me

Kankuro's smirk deepened, "And here I though mister happy-go-lucky would be glad to see me."

Naruto frowned, "Yeah, well, don't push your luck bud," He sat down next to Kankuro and laid his arms on the counter, "Ayame?"

"Hm?" The girl's back had been turned throughout Kankuro and Naruto's 'greeting', so she hadn't realized that the orange-clad ninja had returned to Ichiraku, "Oh, Naruto!" Her expression lightened nonetheless.

"Hey, uh," Naruto began clumsily, "Sorry about yesterday… I wanted to come and apologize for making that mess…"

"Please, don't worry about it!" Ayame waved her hand as if to dismiss any guilt the boy had, "It wasn't that bad. Also…" She looked sad suddenly, "I heard about Kakashi-sensei. I'm very sorry."

"That's ok," Naruto said with a nod, "Grandma Tsunade said that he'll be alright if he stays in the Hospital for a while."

"Oh yeah," Kankuro said, pushing an empty ramen bowl away from him, "I heard about that around Konoha," He looked towards Naruto, "Your sensei got banged up pretty good, huh?"

Once again, Naruto frowned; an expression he hated to give, "Yeah."

"You seem pretty upset," Kankuro chuckled, "But I don't blame ya. If my sensei was almost killed I'd be pretty pissed off too…"

"What are you here anyway Kankuro??" Naruto asked impatiently, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, I came to talk with the Hokage," The Sand Ninja started, "But I was turned away at her door. Chuunin said she was busy attending to someone."

"Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said in realization.

Once again, Kankuro smirked, "I figured as much," He put an elbow on the table and rested his purple-marked head on his palm, "So, what actually happened to him? Your sensei, I mean."

There was a pause for a moment, the only sound being Ayame washing Kankuro's bowl thoroughly. Naruto's fists clenched a little. Talking about his mentor's injuries wouldn't be nearly as bad if they didn't involve the Akatsuki. Kankuro waited for him to start talking, quickly realizing that this was a tender subject for him.

"_God, the way he's acting, it's like the guy DIED_," Kankuro thought tiredly right before Naruto finally started speaking.

"He was attacked."

Was that it? No way, there HAD to be more than that, "… What sort of opponent are we talking about here??" Naruto gave him a questionable look, "I mean, he's a Jounin right? I've heard he's also pretty famous for his skills. I wouldn't imagine such a legendary guy would be beaten by freakin' thugs or something like that."

"They weren't common thugs," Naruto said in response, "They were powerful," He accented the 'powerful' part, "And he had so many injuries on him that Grandma Tsunade said his heart actually stopped once."

Kankuro looked mildly interested, "Whoa. So how'd he survive?"

Naruto shrugged, "I dunno. Luck I guess."

"I guess," Kankuro stretched his arms out, "Having your heart stop is pretty serious business."

"So, Kankuro, what did you want to talk to Grandma-"

"Naruto!" A high and worried voice rang out behind the two chatting ninja.

"Hm?" They both turned around.

"There you are!" Shizune brushed past the shop entrance and strode up to the counter.

"Shizune?" Naruto inquired. Why did she want his attention? Something important? Well, it must've been; the medical ninja looked rather flustered, "_… Wait. Shizune ALWAYS looks overworked_," Naruto thought as he examined her expression.

"I think you'd better come with me," Shizune said in an urgent fashion, "its Kakashi."

At hearing this, the blond ninja immediately shot up from his bar stool, "What?? What about Kakashi-sensei??" God forbid something bad had happened.

"He's woken up early; I thought you should come see."

Thank… The… Lord….

Naruto exhaled a long-held-in breath, then nodded, "Ok! Let's go!"

"Hold up," Kankuro said suddenly. He stood up like Naruto, though in a much calmer fashion, and looked to Shizune, "Miss, uh… Shizune, was it?"

Shizune nodded, a little leery of what a puppet-wielding Sand Ninja could want from her.

"If I go with you guys, is there a chance I'd be able to talk to the Hokage?"

"I… Suppose… Lady Tsunade is in Kakashi's room right now, but…"

"Great," He smiled and heaved Crow back up on his back from its position next to his stool, "Then I'm coming too."

"Ok, ok, could we just go?!" Naruto asked restlessly.

Shizune and Kankuro could hardly yell at Naruto for being a brat now, being as he was only concerned for the well-being of his teacher. So, in light of that, they all dashed off to the Hospital.

Sakura was already in Kakashi's room with Tsunade when the unlikely trio of Naruto, Shizune, and Kankuro came in. She looked surprised when they busted through the door, but only because Kankuro was with them. Behavior like the Hospital-room-crushing kind was to be expected from Naruto.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto was over at his side in .5 seconds.

The silver haired, now weary looking, Jounin gave a smile to Naruto from his sitting position, "I wondered when you'd show, Naruto."

"Shizune…" Tsunade said dangerously.

"Y-Yes, Lady Tsunade??" The brown haired girl asked anxiously, though she knew perfectly well what she would be yelled at for this time.

The Hokage turned to face her assistant, brow creased with furrows. Kankuro made the wise decision to step back by the door just in case things got out of hand.

"I thought I specifically instructed you not to let him in!!" Tsunade barked.

Shizune felt two inches tall, "Yes ma'am, you did… And I'm sorry, but…"

"But??" Tsunade's eyes were as fiery as a volcano.

"Holy crap, she's scary…" Kankuro thought feverishly from the background.

"But… I thought it was a little unfair… N-Naruto really wanted to see him, and…"

Naruto 'stealthily' moved up in front of Tsunade, blocking her wrath from her frightful assistant, "Heeeeeey…. Why couldn't I come in Granny Tsunade?!"

A vein could be seen on the Hokage's forehead. Sakura almost had a mind to hide under Kakashi's bed. As her student, the kunoichi had witnessed the horror that is Tsunade.

"He wasn't even supposed to be conscious until tomorrow!!" Tsunade yelled, "I didn't want him getting…. 'Overexcited'. You tend to have that affect on people Naruto. Especially because you yell when you're excited. I don't want him bothered!"

"You should talk about yelling…" Everyone else in the room thought at the same time.

Naruto looked like he was about to retort when Kakashi butted in, "Lady Tsunade…" Everyone turned to him, "I... Really don't mind that Naruto is here. It's ok."

"If you say so…" Tsunade sighed. She was a little disappointed at technically losing an argument to Naruto.

"So, how do you feel??" Naruto eagerly asked his sensei.

"Not my best," Kakashi admitted, "But better than before…"

"I would hope so," Shizune said, "Those wounds were serious."

"Speaking of serious wounds…" Tsunade walked to the foot of Kakashi's bed and leaned on it, gripping the railing with her hands, "Do you mind telling us how you got them?"

Everyone's attention was completely on Kakashi now; what Tsunade had asked they all wanted to know.

"As you have no doubt heard from Gai…" Kakashi started, "It was… The Akatsuki." He reluctantly said that from knowledge of Naruto and Sakura's disdain for anything related to Itachi Uchiha.

"But Gai said it wasn't Itachi," Tsunade said.

Kakashi nodded tiredly, "No… It wasn't… I don't know who it was. The one that actually attacked me had blond hair and a Stone Headband."

Stone? That was a new one.

"What of the other one?" The Hokage asked.

"… That's where it gets complicated," The Copy Ninja's gaze narrowed, "The other wasn't wearing one of those cloaks. In fact, he wasn't even wearing a headband."

"!?"


	6. Lady Hokage's Mind

"No headband or cloak

"No headband or cloak?!" Tsunade said, baffled, "Then he wasn't with the Akatsuki…?"

"I'm not so sure about that…" Kakashi said, "If he wasn't with the Akatsuki, then I can't imagine why those two would clearly be together."

"Good point…" Tsunade sighed and took her hands off the bed's railing, crossing her arms, "So he must've been affiliated with them somehow."

Naruto did his signature confused face; none of this made any sense! So there was Akatsuki, but there wasn't?? At least, that's how he perceived it. The whole thing could be solved by one simple thing, the way he looked at it: he would go to the Land of Rain and beat the living crap out of the Akatsuki who hurt Kakashi. What was so difficult about that?

Sakura caught Naruto's look and shook her head, "_He's so dense sometimes…_" She thought. Then, an idea popped into her head. Looking at the Hokage, she said, "Lady Tsunade, why don't we send an investigation group over there to check out the situation and maybe ask some questions?"

"I was thinking the same thing Sakura," Tsunade replied, "However, we don't know if the Akatsuki members are still there or not. It would be a very stupid move on our part if we sent them to be annihilated."

"True…" Sakura said remorsefully, putting a hand under her chin in thought.

"Well then… What do you suggest Lady Tsunade?" Shizune piped up from behind her.

"I suggest we lay low for a while," Tsunade said, "It doesn't make much sense to charge right into the Land of Rain right now. We should wait until there's a chance the major threat has left."

The room nodded in agreement to the Hokage's idea.

"Hey, uh… Lady Hokage?" Everyone turned around in question when Kankuro finally said something, "Could I please talk to you about something?"

Tsunade noted Kankuro's headband with an aching feeling in her stomach. When the Sand Village wanted a meeting, it was usually never about enjoyable things.

"So, you're having gang issues?" Tsunade tried summing up the long speech that Kankuro had just given her back in her office.

"I... Guess you could call it that," Kankuro said, "But things are really starting to get severe. Yesterday three civilians were found dead by the Sand Village entrance."

Tsunade looked shocked, "So now people are being killed?" Her face turned stone-cold again, "Have you found a cause of death? Or a reason that the gang would kill those people?"

"No," Kankuro replied regretfully. He hated admitting weakness; it was something he needed work on, "We didn't exactly see these people lying on the ground Lady Hokage," His expression seemed to turn into a sneer, "They were buried."

"Buried?" Tsunade said in disbelief, "Were they buried alive? Or were there signs of struggle?"

The Sand shinobi shook his head, "No, there were no actually wounds on any of the bodies. However, by the expressions they were wearing, it looked like they had been put through the worst torture imaginable."

Torture? "How could they have been…" She mumbled to herself, looking down at her desk. Within a few moments, she looked back up at Kankuro, "So, you're requesting I send a team of ninja with you back to Sunagakure to tighten your security?"

"That's about the size of it."

"Hmm…. How many do you need?"

"Well, the number is really up to you, but we're a tad in need of at least another squad."

"A squad, huh?" Tsunade turned around in her chair, looking out the window. A smile crept up to her face as she watched Naruto and Sakura exit the Hospital, seeming to be arguing, "I think I've already thought of a group…" She swiveled back around to face Kankuro, "How does a squad of four sound?"

"Fine. Who?"

The Hokage smiled.


	7. Good Enough For Me, Believe It!

"… Another butterfly

"… Another butterfly!"

"Damn, that's the fifth one today… I think we're going crazy Choji."

Choji laughed heartily at the comment his lazy friend had just sighed out, "Probably! You want another chip Shikamaru?"

Shikamaru put a lazy hand up, "Nah, I'm good. I think I'll just take a nap. All the clouds look like butterflies today."

Choji chuckled and sat up, holding his chip bag firmly. Even though Shikamaru seemed uninterested, he was having a great time. Since Konoha's laziest ninja was a Chuunin, he'd had a lot more missions. Sometimes he even wished he wasn't a Chuunin just so he could relax when he wanted to. However, today Tsunade had given him no missions, so the two friends seized that opportunity to go to Shikamaru's 'Special Seat' to watch clouds and eat potato chips; truly one of life's greatest pleasures.

Shikamaru's eyes had just begun to droop when an annoyingly familiar voice reached his unwilling ears….

"Hey! Shikamaru, Choji!"

"Naruto…" Shikamaru groaned, sitting up by Choji, who looked confused as to why Naruto was yelling for them.

The blond ninja ran up the stairs to their Special Seat and stood in front of both of them, "Hey, you two!"

"What's up Naruto?" Choji questioned curiously.

"It better be good," Shikamaru said groggily, holding his head in a hand, "You're cutting into valuable sleeping time…"

Naruto ignored Shikamaru's annoyed comment, "Granny Tsunade wanted me to get you guys."

"Huh? The Hokage?" Choji looked surprised.

Shikamaru lifted his head up, "I swear that woman is out to kill me… What does she want?"

"She didn't say anything about that," Naruto said, looking confused himself, "She just told me to get you guys… Kiba and Akamaru too."

Shikamaru sighed and stood up, "Fine then…" As always, his posture was lousy, "Let's go get Kiba and Akamaru…"

"Right!" Choji stood up, a little more boisterous than his best friend.

The three of them wandered off to where the dynamic duo of Kiba and Akamaru Inuzuka usually were; the training grounds. Sure enough, before they saw anything, they heard him whooping and hollering like he usually did when jumping through the trees with Akamaru.

"Hm?" Shino was the first to notice them approaching as he was in the middle of insect-collecting.

"Hey Shino," Shikamaru greeted, "I suppose Kiba's nearby?"

"As I'm sure you've already heard," Shino said in his frighteningly stoic voice, "He and Akamaru are up in the trees." He mumbled something about annoying as Kiba yelled out once again to his furry companion.

"Shino, I-" Hinata jogged out of the forest; her sweat and lack of a white jacket told everyone that she had been training, "Oh!" Her cheeks flushed a light pink when she saw the group. Of course, she was mostly looking at Naruto, "H-Hello everyone," She smiled in a friendly way and waved.

"Hi Hinata," Choji said with a smile.

"Wow, looks like you've been working hard Hinata," Naruto said to her. He smiled, "Keep it up!"

Her pink blush began to deepen as she smiled awkwardly, "O-Oh… Thank you… Naruto. I will definitely keep going," She looked towards Shikamaru, "Is there something you all need?"

"Yeah, we were looking for Kiba," Shikamaru responded.

"Oh, well, he's in the forest. I can go get him if you-"

Hinata was cut off by a familiar 'arf' as Akamaru came flying off the trees and onto Naruto's head.

"WHOA!" Naruto yelled, not knowing at first what had crashed into him, "Oh, Akamaru!" He said after realizing that it was the white puppy who was smiling down at him with a wagging tail.

A laugh from above caught everyone's attention, "Pretty high strung, aren't you Naruto?" Kiba leapt down from the trees and into the midst of the 'gathering'. Akamaru hopped into Kiba's jacket shortly after the ninja had made contact with solid ground again, "What's up?"

"Lady Hokage wants us all in her office," Choji said.

"What for?" Kiba raised an eyebrow, "Some new mission?"

"We don't know," Naruto said, "She didn't say anything about why."

"She'll probably explain that to us once we're all in her office," Shikamaru said bluntly.

The group nodded and then, after saying goodbye to the rest of Squad 8, made their way back to the Hokage's Tower. One by one they filed into her office. All of them were more than surprised at seeing Kankuro standing by Tsunade. He seemed equally surprised to see all of them; especially Naruto.

"Ah, there you all are!" Tsunade greeted them with a small smile, "Now, you're probably all wondering why I gathered you all, so I'm going to explain."

"_Kankuro?_" Naruto thought, "_Huh. This must be about what he came here for._"

"There has been continuing troubles with… Gangs in the Sand Village," Tsunade started, "And recently, they have gotten out of hand. According to Kankuro, three civilians were found dead yesterday at the entrance to the Sand Village. They believe it was a cause of these gangs."

The group looked shocked, "Whoa," Naruto looked upset, "So these creeps are just killing people for fun??"

"We don't know," Tsunade said, "You four are going to accompany Kankuro on his way back to the Sand Village, and you're going to help secure the village and protect the civilians," She looked the crew in the faces, "Shikamaru, you will act as the squad leader."

Shikamaru nodded, "Right."

"Do you all understand the task at hand?"

The group nodded seriously; they knew that this was no D-Ranked mission, nor was it to be taken lightly.

"You'll all be staying there until the problem with the Sand is resolved," the Hokage announced.

Once again, the group nodded in understanding.

"Now, gather up your things and come report to Kankuro when you're ready to leave."

Excitedly, Naruto walked a little faster than the others. Kiba chuckled, "You act like we're going on vacation."

Naruto turned to face them with a determined look, "I know, but that's because I'm finally getting an awesome and tough mission!!"

Shikamaru looked bored, "You make it sound like this is the mission to end all missions or something..."

Naruto walked along with a spring in his step, making Shikamaru sigh. Choji laughed, "Something tells me HE'S the one who will make this the mission to end all missions."

They all knew it was dangerous, but at the same time, no one in the group could actually comprehend the worst case scenario. But they were about to discover the difference between dreams and reality; however subtle it was.


	8. Evil Comes In Threes

Silence

Silence.

This was it! The big mission! He finally got to go on a mission WORTHY of his talents! He would show that old lady Tsunade how strong he was! Not the mention the whole Sand Village; that was bonus points.

More silence.

He wondered how tough these gangsters really were. Of course, it didn't matter in the least; he would still blow them away into next month. Yeah… Next month sounded good.

Continued silence.

Ok, now it was getting ridiculous. Wasn't anything going to happen?! Glancing around, the boy found no signs of… well… life! No birds were chirping, and there wasn't even a nice breeze; ok, ok, no problem, no problem… He was sure that he was going to get plenty of action when they reached Sunagakure. But, still… Good lord, wasn't anyone going to say something?! The boy had to convince himself that he wasn't traveling with a pack of undead zombies. Although…. Fighting zombies would be fun and exotic, wouldn't it?

And still, the silence prolonged.

No, wait!! He heard something!

_Yawn. _

The boy had to restrain himself from sighing very heavily. "_Well crap…" _ He thought as one of his teammates (the laziest person on the face of the planet, he was sure) heaved a loud yawn.

"_He did say that Granny Tsunade was trying to kill him…_" The blond thought, glancing at his topic of thought, "_Oh well… No zombies here I guess…"_

"Hey, Kankuro…"

Naruto was sure he heard angels sing; someone talked!! Hopefully what he said would spark some dangerous topic of choice, or maybe some giant man-eating giraffe would- Ok, never mind, that's just ridiculous… Naruto concluded that his thoughts of a tough battle had crossed over to another atmosphere ENTIRELY.

"Yeah?" Kankuro, who was leading the group, turned a glance at Shikamaru, who had just broken the eerie silence.

"I have a question about these people who are terrorizing your town," Shikamaru answered as the group jumped across the trees.

Kankuro's brow furrowed. Did he have to say terrorizing? "Yeah, what about 'em?"

"Are these guys just run of the mill bandits, or are they actual ninja?"

The question surprised Naruto, Choji, and Kiba.

Kankuro was silent.

"I mean, if they were just bandits, I can't see how they would've eluded the Sand's ninja for this long," Shikamaru finished, clarifying his question.

The Sand shinobi looked suddenly uncomfortable, "We don't know."

"You don't know??" Kiba asked, accenting the 'know' part, "How can you not tell?"

"You guys don't know about how those villagers were killed, do you?" Kankuro responded roughly.

"… How?" Shikamaru asked after he knew by the sudden chill in the air that no one else was going to ask.

Kankuro didn't respond for a moment. He stopped jumping and let himself fall to the forest floor. The rest of them followed his lead and waited for him to answer Shikamaru's grim question. Kankuro turned to face all of them, "They were found bu-" His eyes widened, "Everyone get down!!" He yelled suddenly as a flurry of kunai came raining down on them.

Shocked, everyone ducked into the trees to avoid being pricked by the horrible ninja tool. There wasn't more than one flurry though, so they all quickly got up, getting into battle ready stances.

"W-What the hell?!" Naruto said, glaring back at the direction the kunai came from.

"Kankuro?!" Shikamaru said, quickly turning to him.

Kankuro slipped Crow off his back, "Watch it, you guys! It's them."

"Them?" Choji repeated, looking on into the trees, "You mean those people that are terrorizing the Sand?"

"Yeah," Kankuro said grimly.

Suddenly, three of their attackers jumped down to the ground, staring the group down. Each of them had dark masks like Kakashi, so only their eyes could be seen.

"Who the hell are you guys?!" Naruto yelled out, although Kankuro had just confirmed that they were the enemy.

The one in the middle chuckled, "My name is Hideyoshi. These are my brothers, Katsuo," He pointed to his left, "and Ren," He pointed to his right, "Pleased to make your acquaintance," He said sneeringly, in a voice that could make you cringe, "?!" Hideyoshi's eyes widened as he and his brothers stopped; like they were frozen.

Naruto, who was confused, turned around and smiled when he saw Shikamaru holding them down with his Shadow Possession Jutsu, "Yeah, alright Shikamaru!!" The whole group seemed to be happier at seeing this.

"Unfortunately…" Shikamaru smirked, still holding them, "The feeling of acquaintance isn't' mutual."

"You guys don't know who you're up against!" Kiba said as he and Akamaru got ready for a fight.

Hideyoshi, Katsuo, and Ren smirked, "No…" Hideyoshi said, "You're the ones who don't know you you're up against!"

Suddenly, Katsuo disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"What?? A Substitution Jutsu?!" Naruto exclaimed.

"I didn't think anyone could escape the Shadow Possession Jutsu like that!" Choji said.

"No one has before…" Shikamaru said dangerously.

"Careful guys! He could be anywhere!" Kankuro warned, getting Crow ready,"_Damn, I didn't think to bring the Black Ant…"_

"?!" Shikamaru suddenly clenched his teeth together, grunting.

"Shikamaru? What's wrong??" Choji asked quickly.

"I…. I don't know… I… I can't…" Shikamaru's shoulders started shaking and beads of sweat started rolling down his face.

"Hey, what's going on?!" Naruto asked quickly, running up to Shikamaru and Choji.

Hideyoshi laughed, drawing everyone's attention,"You haven't seen anything yet, children!"

The shadow that impaired Hideyoshi and Ren's movements slowly started to dissipate and return to Shikamaru, who looked like he might crumble at any moment.

"Shikamaru!" Choji knelt down by his best friend, holding on to his shoulder, "Are you alright?!"

"The shadow came back…" Kiba said, flabbergasted.

The moment the shadow came back, Shikamaru broke down on his hands and knees. His breathing was labored, and his body became hot from sweat. Every breath was let out in desperate gasps.

"What the hell did you do to him?!" Naruto demanded, staring at Hideyoshi with a loathsome glare.

"Quite a nasty glare, boy," Hideyoshi and Ren both chuckled, "But it's Katsuo's handiwork this time…"

"The ninja that disappeared?" Naruto thought.

"Hunt him down," Kankuro said, stepping forward with Crow. He looked angry.

"No problem!" Kiba said confidently, throwing in a smirk, "Akamaru!" The small dog barked and hopped onto Kiba's back as he crouched down, "Ninja Art: beast Mimicry!" Akamaru then transformed into a copy of Kiba, "Fang Over Fang!!" A swirling vortex is what became of Kiba and Akamaru as they launched into the trees.

"Brother, it seems that they have one of Konoha's dogs with them," Ren said to Hideyoshi as the two of them watched Kiba and Akamaru burrow into the trees looking for their brother, mildly interested.

"I see that," Hideyoshi said while looking at the explosive attack.

"Hey, don't look at him!"

"Huh?"

Naruto flew up into the air and wound up his fist, going down to punch Hideyoshi, "I'm YOUR fight!"

Underneath his mask, Hideyoshi smirked, "Sorry," He and Ren jumped back to the branch of a tree, "But I'm afraid we've run out of time."

"What?!" Naruto said as he landed back on solid ground.

"We'll definitely play again sometime," Hideyoshi waved, "Goodbye for now!" Then, he and Ren disappeared without a trace.

Soon after, Kiba an Akamaru's attack ended, leaving many a toppled tree in its wake. However…

"It's no good!" Kiba yelled to the others, "I've lost all of their scents!"

"Gaah!!" Shikamaru gasped loudly, falling to his face.

"Shikamaru!!" Choji called out again with worry in his voice.

"Damn it!" Naruto yelled as he ran back to the group, "They're all gone!"

Everyone gathered around Shikamaru, since he was the one who had received the enemy's attack

Struggling, he managed to turn himself to his back and open his eyes. He breathed long heavy breathes, "That…" He gasped, "Was hell…"


	9. Voices

"Shikamaru…" Choji said, flabbergasted and so angry at those enemy ninja that he wanted to destroy every last one of them, "What did

"Shikamaru…" Choji said, flabbergasted and so angry at those enemy ninja that he wanted to destroy every last one of them, "What did they do to you??" Every syllable was annunciated clearly.

Shikamaru closed his tired eyes momentarily, "I'm… Not too sure…." He was beginning to get his breath back, "Most of it… Just felt like sharp pain…" He glanced over at Choji, his face starting to turn a tad red. He hated looking weak in situations like this, "Hey… Choji…"

Choji was immediately alert ready to help Shikamaru in any way possible, "Yes?"

"Could you… Help me up?" The shadow-user still felt embarrassed as Choji acted as his crutch, helping him to stand up. He winced every now and then.

"You sure you're ok?" Kiba asked in a concerned voice.

"Yeah…" Shikamaru sighed, still with an arm slung around Choji's shoulder.

"When I find those dirty bastards again…" Naruto said in a threatening voice, cracking his knuckles.

"… It's alright Choji. I'm pretty sure I can stand now…" Shikamaru said after a moment of silence.

Choji still looked unsure, but slowly slid Shikamaru's arm off his shoulder. Any faltering at all, however, and he wouldn't hesitate to help him again. Everyone got in a sort of ready stance, as if they were waiting for their squad leader to fall on his face again.

"Don't worry, I'm not crippled…" Shikamaru said, in a sort of annoyed way. He didn't like it too much being worried about so much; those things weighed heavily on his lazy conscious. He stretched out his arms a little, as well as his neck.

Surprisingly enough, Shikamaru wasn't the first to ask the all-important question of the enemy to Kankuro; it was Naruto.

He had quite the serious look about him as he faced the Sand Ninja. Kankuro looked surprised; he didn't think he ever saw this guy being _serious_ before.

"Kankuro, how many of them are there?" Naruto asked in a voice that told everyone he could even tell that they were going to be a troublesome threat to get rid of.

"We don't know for sure," Kankuro replied sourly. He wasn't happy about the situation now, "But they're definitely going to be an annoyance to track down."

"Kankuro…" Shikamaru said. Kankuro turned to him silently; by now, he had figured out that out of the group, Shikamaru had the best head on his shoulders.

"Yeah?"

"You never told us how the townspeople were killed."

"… Right…" Kankuro took in a breath, "We found them… Buried right outside the Sand Village."

The group looked disgusted, "BURIED??" Naruto and Kiba said at once.

Kankuro nodded, "Luckily, the perpetrators did a sloppy job of the burial, so we were able to tell that something was wrong…. But the strange thing was, they didn't have any puncture wounds on them at all… We couldn't find even a bruise."

"So… The enemy buried them alive??" Kiba crinkled up his nose.

"That looks like the case…"

"Wait a minute;" Shikamaru piped up, a hand to his chin in thought, "What were their facial expressions like? The people who were buried I mean…"

"They looked…" Kankuro looked at the ground, "Like they had been screaming… Suffering, maybe even tortured."

"But, how can that be if there were no puncture wounds??" Choji asked.

"Well, I think the answer is what they did to me…" Shikamaru responded.

"So, you think they were killed by…" Naruto started.

"Yeah," Shikamaru nodded, "A genjutsu."

"But, I thought it felt like a sharp pain to you…?" Naruto said obliviously, not quite comprehending the full meaning of a genjutsu.

"Yeah," Shikamaru said again, "that's definitely what it was… But…" He looked down, "If they hadn't stopped…. If the pain had gotten worse…" He looked his comrades in the faces, "I probably would've taken my own life."

"?!"

"It… It was that horrible…?" Choji said in a mortified way.

Shikamaru nodded with a silent sigh. He didn't want to admit that, especially to Choji, but it was important that he did.

"So, you think that's why the villagers were…?" Naruto looked towards Kankuro, whose eyes were wide as he comprehended what Shikamaru had explained.

"There's really no other choice if there was no puncture wounds…" Kankuro finally said. He grunted out of frustration and heaved Crow to his back once more, "Come on; we're just wasting time by standing here. It usually takes three days to get to the Sand Village, but if we hurry we can shorten the time…"

Everyone nodded, and with that, they started off again; this time, much more alert.

A good three hours into the sprint, Shikamaru started to go slower; he was breaking a sweat. Choji immediately noticed this and rushed to his side.

"You alright Shikamaru??" He asked.

"Yeah," Shikamaru replied as he wiped beads of sweat from his brow, "I think… I think I'm still a little winded from that jutsu is all…"

"… If you're sure…" Choji mumbled, still looking worried.

Shikamaru waved a hand, trying to dismiss Choji's fears of him still being injured, "Sure thing… Don't worry about me." He smiled on the inside because of Choji's concern; he was always like that. However…

"_I don't understand… My heart is being twice as fast as it normally does when I run like this…"_ The Chuunin wondered, slightly biting his lip in frustration, _"Why am I falling so far behind?"_

_I told you we weren't done playing boy… Is that answer enough for you?_

"Huh?" Shikamaru glanced behind him; there was no one there. But, he was sure that he heard someone. Maybe not.

"Shikamaru?" Once again, Choji looked at his friend with concern.

"Sorry about that," Shikamaru said quickly, "I just thought I heard something is all. No big deal."

No big deal? Then why did Shikamaru feel a heavy weight on his shoulders, in the air around them? It was almost like… Death.

**Author's Note: **

**Hey everyone! Let me take this opportunity to thank everyone who has been giving me such positive feedback from this story! Thank you so much; you all make my writing worthwhile. **

**Second order of business… I'm not sure how long this story's going to be, but it's not going to go much longer than 20; maybe shorter…. Ah, I'm not quite sure at this point.**

**ALSO! I'm thinking about a new story idea involving Gai-sensei and Kakashi-sensei; it's a friendship thing, and I think it's a good idea…. So! Just warning you ahead of time about that.**

**Also, also! I'm very proud with how this story is coming along; it really just started as an idea, but then I kept writing, and the ideas kept coming. I hope to not give the ending away too much; I'll try and keep you all guessing as much as possible! With plenty of cliffys of course! XD **

**Once again, thank you all; take care of yourselves!**


	10. Shikamaru's Mind

"Let's stop here," Kankuro called out to the rest of them

"Let's stop here," Kankuro called out to the rest of them.

The group seemed to sigh in unison. Thank goodness. They had been going for hours and really could use a break. Everyone jumped down into a clearing near to the group of trees they had just cleared to rest and set up camp.

"If we continue at this pace…" Kankuro started after they had a fire and tents set up, "We should be able to reach Sunagakure by tomorrow afternoon; maybe sooner."

Group nod.

"Hey, anyone seen Shikamaru?" Naruto asked, looking around the makeshift campsite, "After we stopped, it seemed like he wandered off…"

Everyone exchanged glances of confusion, saying without words that none of them had the slightest idea where he could've run off to.

"Well…" Choji said nervously. The group turned to him, waiting for further explanation, "… Shikamaru's been acting a little… Weird… Since that jutsu was put on him."

"How do you mean?" Kiba asked as Akamaru wriggled his way into his master's jacket.

"Well…" Choji started to fidget a little, "Back when we were still moving, he kept on looking over his shoulder, like he was really paranoid about something…"

"Paranoid?" Once again, Naruto was clueless.

"Does he think they're going to attack us again?" Kankuro asked.

"…"

"Choji?" Naruto cocked his head to the side.

Suddenly, the chubby ninja stood up, his hands balled into fists. Without as much as a word, he pivoted around and started walking into the blackness of the forest.

"Hey, Choji, where are you going??" Naruto said, halfway yelling.

"To find Shikamaru; I'll be right back," He answered flatly.

"What's eating him you figure?" Naruto said, once again clueless, "Shikamaru can't really be in that much trouble, can he?"

"We should follow him, shouldn't we?" Kiba asked, "I mean, he seemed pretty worried about Shikamaru."

"No," Kankuro said bluntly. The two Leaf shinobi that remained looked at him with confusion. Kankuro specified, "He said he'd go find that lazy Chuunin of yours… Well, his tone and facial expression said, 'Don't follow me.'"

Kiba and Naruto exchanged semi-surprised glances, as if they didn't expect Kankuro to be paying that much attention.

There was something definitely wrong though; Choji could feel it in the very back of his head. A little voice that warned him something was going to go very wrong very soon and he couldn't help but feel that it involved his best friend in more ways than one.

"Shikamaru," Choji called out- a tad nervous- when he finally spotted the young Nara sitting stop a rock face, overlooking the view below; where the sand started and the trees stopped.

Shikamaru glanced behind, "Hey," He greeted dryly, immediately averting his attention back to his first 'scenic' view.

"Are… You ok?" Choji finally asked from behind him, not quite knowing how he should ask. He fumbled a little on his words, "I mean, you've been kinda off since that atta-"

"Choji," Shikamaru interrupted, still not looking at his good pal, "I told you earlier I'm fine. Don't worry about it."

Almost without warning, Choji's demeanor grew a little fiercer, "You know it's no use lying to me Shikamaru. I know you better than anyone else on this mission; acting like this isn't… Well, it isn't you! And why'd you walk off as soon as we set up camp?"

Shikamaru sighed, the brick wall that was his emotion guard crumbling, "I don't know if I can explain it to you without you thinking I'm nuts."

"Try me," Choji sat next to him.

"I'm hearing… Voices," Shikamaru seemed to struggle with the right words. But how do you say you're insane in a dignified way?

"Voices?" Choji raised an eyebrow.

"Mm-hm," Shikamaru agreed, "And here's the thing… It's the voice of that guy who put the genjutsu on me earlier…"

"What??"

"During the jutsu, I didn't want to have to explain this, but… Well, during the jutsu, he talked to me too. While… While the ripping pain in my head grew worse and worse."

Choji felt the taste of sour in his mouth. He felt like he needed to punch something; dealing with Shikamaru's pain just made him lust for the blood of whoever caused him said pain. Maybe lust was too strong a word though… Crave maybe?

Then something dawned on Choji, "Do you think it's part of the genjutsu?"

"Well, there's really no other explanation, is there?" Shikamaru sighed again and put a hand to his temples, "I came out here to try and think about it… But…"

There was a silence as Choji waited for Shikamaru to finish his explanation. But it didn't feel right; it was too long. Finally Choji leaned forward so that he could see Shikamaru's face; what his hand had been covering.

His brow knitted together in wild worry, "Shikamaru!?" He shouted as he looked at his friend's face.

Shikamaru's eyes had gone unnaturally wide, and his face had gone unnaturally white. His whole being was unnatural at that moment! It was like he was frozen in place.

"Shikamaru!!" Choji finally took Shikamaru's shoulders and shook him, "Answer me! What's wrong??"

Ten seconds later, Shikamaru blinked, dazed, like he was suddenly aware of the world around him. Choji groaned in relief.

"Are you alright? What happened??" He demanded breathlessly.

No, there was no time for explanations now.

Shikamaru darted up from his sitting position, his hands clenching into fists, "Come on Choji!" He shouted as he sped back towards their camp.

"W-Wha-" Choji was confused, but immediately followed, "What's going on??"

"_The Sand… We have to get to the Sand…_" Shikamaru's thoughts raced through his head, blocking out whatever questions of What or Who Choji threw at him.

He hated the voice in his head; the voice of Katsuo Mashima. However, what he had just heard could not be ignored. It threatened lives, and God knew Shikamaru wouldn't have lives on his conscious… Not again.

**Author's Note:**

**This chapter mainly revolved around Choji and Shikamaru, and there was no real action, so I apologize. (I just keep on leaving you anxious people on cliffys; I'm horrible! XP)**

**ALSO! Please do not ever think, if I do one of these sorta friendship-ish chapters… DO NOT think that I am intending Yaoi. It is pure comradeship. I have and will not write any stories with Yaoi, Yuri or Hentai in them…. Sorry, just wanted to get that point across.**

**Fortunately, we're going to get some more action here in upcoming chapters; it may slow down a bit for a chapter or two, but I have a very good (in my opinion) ending for this story. Please note good can mean happy, sad, or meh. (Translation for meh: Characters aren't totally happy nor are they totally sad.) So, I hope you all keep reading and enjoying!**

**Reviews please! **


	11. From Sand To Ashes

It wasn't that fun while waiting around for Choji and Shikamaru to come back; at least not for Kiba and Naruto

It wasn't that fun while waiting around for Choji and Shikamaru to come back; at least not for Kiba and Naruto. The urge to spark up a conversation was VERY necessary; however none of the shinobi in the group quite knew how to start said conversation and what to talk about even.

Ridiculous.

Maybe the subject could be the situation at hand? Nah, Kiba quickly dismissed that thought, "_It would only make Kankuro grouchier…"_ He thought nervously, "_He's looked pretty pissed ever since we got attacked earlier today."_

That's when Naruto opened his mouth, "Man, what do you suppose is taking Choji and Shikamaru so long?"

Kiba snorted, "Shikamaru left as soon as we set up genius; he would've had plenty of time to get away somewhere."

Naruto looked a tad unpleased at Kiba's name-calling, but didn't yell him out for it. He was actually starting to get worried. Shikamaru was his friend, and friends worry about friends when they know something's wrong! Also, Naruto had never been a cold-hearted person, even after being alone all his life. He would risk his own life to save even a stranger he had just met on a mission. Heck! He would die for his friends, no question.

But that wasn't the problem here; the problem was Shikamaru's head, "I'm just a little worried about what Choji said about Shikamaru behaving strangely… I mean, that jutsu looked really painful."

Kiba frowned, noticing the concerned tone in Naruto's voice and realized he did have a point, "Yeah, I'm worried too… But I-" He was interrupted by a lively 'arf' from Akamaru, "Really?" He sniffed the air after responding to whatever it was Akamaru had just said.

"What's up? What'd he say?" Naruto asked.

Kiba stood up, "Shikamaru and Choji are coming; fast," After a small pause, he mumbled, "I don't like this…"

A moment after Kiba had voiced his opinion, a disgruntled Shikamaru and Choji landed swiftly in the 'campsite.' Kankuro's eyes narrowed; Kiba's feelings of a bad situation had become contagious.

"Shikamaru! Choji!" Naruto called out. He smiled, "You ok? We've been worrying about you."

"There's no time for that," Shikamaru said quickly but fiercely, "The Sand-"

"What's wrong with the Sand?!" Kankuro shot up from his seat.

"I'll explain on the way there, but we've gotta go; now! There's no time!"

There were so many questions that the squad wanted to ask their leader, but they heard the pure urgency in his voice and understood that questions would have to wait. They all immediately took off, with Kankuro quickly ascending to the front of the line.

It was harder to run in sand than trees, Naruto found. Nevertheless, they had to keep moving. Whatever was going on, it had to be an emergency for Shikamaru to be freaking out.

"So, what exactly is going on in the Sand?" Naruto asked, unable to not know any longer.

Shikamaru explained the voice of Katsuo in his head, and how he had been conversing with him, however weird that sounded, ever since the genjutsu was used. He reluctantly told the group how the rogue told him about another 'little trick' they were going to play on the Sand.

"They're going to blow up the Kazekage's Tower…" Shikamaru said dryly.

"WHAT?!" The group shared that reaction.

"Those freaking bastards!!" Naruto growled.

"Wait a minute," Choji said, "Why would Katsuo have told you that Shikamaru? He must've known that we would hurry off to stop them."

Valid point #1.

"I've thought about that," Shikamaru responded, "and there's no doubt in my mind; they want us to hurry there. It's probably a trap."

"But there's no way we're turning back now," Kankuro said venomously.

"That's right," Shikamaru nodded, "So that means that we have to be even more on our guard. Remember, our goal is to protect the civilians, not start any riot or something," He referred specifically to Kiba and Naruto on this one, "So don't do anything rash or unnecessary. Got it?"

Everyone shared a serious nod.

The group was tired; that much was certain. However, to be able to get to the Sand Village on time, they would have to go past their breaking points. That said, they caught sight of Sunagakure's tall walls in a few hours.

"There it is!" Kankuro announced, since he was in the very front.

No one knew. Nobody saw what was coming. In two seconds time, well, they wouldn't have a spare moment to think about what was going to happen.

BOOM.

Through the walls of the Sand Village, a mirage of black, red, yellow, and orange danced through the air as the Kazekage's Tower burned slowly. Even a building made of sand could be blown apart, and that point was made valid the very second the tall tower blew.

The group of ninja stopped in their tracks. All that they could do was hang their mouths wide in shock; they had been too late.

The fire reflected in the eyes of Kankuro as his thoughts flashed to Temari and Gaara… Their family had always lived in the tower because of their father, the late Kazekage. The thought of them gone…

"No, damnit!!" He cursed loudly as he shot forward once more, his face lined with agony and rage.

"Kankuro!" Naruto reached out as he ran.

"Let's go!" Shikamaru said commandingly as they all dashed after Kankuro.

A small crowd had begun to gather by the Kazekage's tower; citizens watching in shock and disbelief. They hadn't the slightest idea how this could've happened.

Meanwhile, other Sand shinobi were scrambling to find a water source; something to douse the flames.

"Look at them all down there; they panic so easily…" Katsuo chuckled heartily with his brothers as they stood behind the flaming tower, on a southern wall.

"The biggest weakness of these desert fools," Hideyoshi, the eldest, began, "Is that water jutsu are not very common in their society," He brushed a lock of his chocolate-brown hair out of his face and let it rest on his neck, "Unpreparedness will be the death of you."

"Brother, they're here," Ren had just come back from sneaking over to the front gate. Shikamaru's squad had just cleared the entrance to the village, "and they're just as frantic as the Sand citizens."

"What do you expect?" Hideyoshi said in a bored way, "They are only children after all."

"I don't get it," Katsuo groaned, "Why don't we just burn down the whole village? It wouldn't be hard…"

"That's not our priority Katsuo," Hideyoshi said firmly.

"Yeah, yeah…" Katsuo stretched.

"Are we instructed to kill the others with the target Brother?" Ren questioned his eldest.

"If they become enough of a nuisance," Hideyoshi replied, "though I don't think they will be a problem."

"We're not even the ones who get to finish the job…" Katsuo grumbled, folding his arms.

"Silence Katsuo!" Hideyoshi shot a glare at him, "You may not be the youngest, but that doesn't give you the right to speak out against him."

Katsuo's gaze narrowed; he wasn't intimidated by Hideyoshi, but the other… The other was dangerous, and he had dangerous connections. "_One day though_, Katsuo always told himself, "_I will overthrow him and his organization. Fool Hideyoshi, always blindly following orders like a slave._"

Ren noticed Katsuo's spiteful glare at Hideyoshi. Why must he always be so disrespectful? Ren, as the youngest, never dared to speak out against Hideyoshi, or _him._ But he never wanted to. To him, the goals of his family seemed profitable enough, and he could never understand why Katsuo always had a hard time following orders.

The orders had been halfway filled out. The bait was here, now it was time to lower the trap.

"Kankuro, where the hell..?!" Naruto and the others had scrambled off after their Sand ally, who had booked it to the tower.

"He's actually thinking of going in there?!" Kiba said, astounded, "He's nuts! He'll burn up!"

They all stopped right in front of the tower after they made their way through the crowds. Naruto managed to grab hold of Kankuro's arm before he entered the fiery death trap.

"You idiot!! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" He yelled.

"Let go of me!" Kankuro ordered ferociously, pulling at Naruto's grasp, "I have to go in there!! Temari and Gaara are still inside!"

"How do you know that!?" Naruto commanded, "Besides, what would you do if they were in there?? The fire's out of control, there's no way you'd come out alive!!"

Kankuro scowled at Naruto fiercely. He didn't understand! That blond Leaf was the idiot in this situation! Kankuro hated feeling weak. And he couldn't help hating even more as he stood watching while his village was burning… And maybe even his siblings…


	12. Moonlight Awareness

The fire continued to burn the Kazekage's Mansion like it was made of paper

The fire continued to burn the Kazekage's Mansion like it was made of paper.

Almost suddenly though, the fire was doused; doused by an unlikely source. Sand. The squad below stared with wide eyes as a giant wave of sand drowned the fire in the sand castle.

"… Gaara??" Kankuro finally called out; God help him if it wasn't.

As a sort of response to Kankuro's call, Gaara walked out from behind the mansion, with Temari following close behind. Kankuro exhaled a long-held breath and jogged up to them.

"You guys alright??" He said, almost demanded, actually.

"We're fine Kankuro," Temari answered, stepping up beside Gaara, "Thanks to Gaara anyway."

"Whoa, how the hell did you guys get out of there in one piece??" Kiba thought out loud.

Temari gave the unusual group a questioning look and then turned back to Kankuro as if expecting an explanation of some sort.

"That can wait," Kankuro answered, "Was there anyone else inside?"

Temari's expression turned grim, and she opened her mouth to speak when Gaara interrupted.

"There was," He slightly accented the 'was' part.

"So you're saying that they were caught in the explosion?" Naruto asked.

Gaara glanced at Naruto momentarily, "Not quite… It's not something that's easy to explain."

"We can show you," Temari said hesitantly, "Before the other Sand ninja come to clean up the mess…" With a beckoning hand, she and Gaara led everyone to the back of the Kazekage's Mansion, "Here," She pointed to the body of a Sand ninja sprawled on the ground.

Everyone made sick and angry faces as they all realized that there were no puncture wounds on the body. He did, however, look like he'd been tortured… Badly.

"Damn it!!" Kankuro cursed, clenching his fists.

"What could they be trying to accomplish?" Temari said in barely above a horrified whisper.

"That's why we're here," Shikamaru said dryly, standing up. He had been crouched over to examine the body. He turned to Temari, "As for their goal; we don't know. But we do know how they've been killing these people."

A group of Sand shinobi came around to the back and- like Temari said –started to look around the mansion for the major area of damage.

"… I kind of think that we should be someplace more private," Shikamaru said again, "Not that they can't know, but it'd probably be best to keep a low profile right now; we don't want more people to panic."

Temari nodded in agreement, seeing that Shikamaru had a valid point, "Yeah, I understand. We have a house here that we can talk freely in."

"A house?" Naruto looked a little confused, "I thought you guys lived in the Kazekage's place?"

Temari gave Naruto a look like he asked an obvious question, "It's always good to have a back-up place to stay, isn't it?" She said this matter-of-factly, "Besides, we really have no reason to live there anymore."

"…_I still don't get it,_" Naruto thought tiredly.

The group had successfully maneuvered their way out of the still shocked crowds and into the house Temari spoke of without much trouble. The house itself was a relatively small place, with the bedrooms upstairs and more living space in the entryway. Everyone moved silently into the living room – a round room with a couch and cushions lining the walls- and shifted into a comfortable position as Shikamaru started relaying what they knew about this deadly enemy trio and their experience with them.

"They never really said what their problem was with us," Naruto said, going into serious mode, "But it must've been something big for what they did to Shikamaru."

Choji flinched a little.

"… My guess is that they knew Kankuro was sent for reinforcements," Shikamaru stated after casting a quick glance at Choji's uneasiness, "They must've known how this was all going to play out."

"How do you figure?" Kankuro asked.

"Well, it seems a little too convenient that they would blow up the Kazekage's Mansion when they knew we were coming. Also, the fact that they used their genjutsu to tell me what they were going to do adds to the plan suspicion. They knew that we would come if we knew what was going to happen; and they set it up perfectly… But…" He sighed, "I've worked my head around all the angles and can't see a clear picture of what they want."

"Do you think they could be trying to destroy the village?" Choji asked. Temari and Kankuro shifted in their seats on the couch nervously.

"If they were trying to destroy the village, they would've done it by now," Gaara said suddenly. Everyone seemed a little startled at his interjection. He faced them unblinkingly, "You've all seen for yourselves what kind of power they have over one's mind. The fact that they also got around our security multiple times suggests that they would have no problem destroying us."

There was a small series of head nods from the people in the room after Gaara finished.

"Gaara has a point," Shikamaru said, crossing his arms, "These guys have been able to keep the villagers in a steady panic without even breaking a sweat…" He thought hard, trying to look at this from an intellectual point of view, being as he knew these guys were smart, "It almost seems to me that they want us here…"

"Why would they want us here?" Kiba asked, "I figure they're smart enough to know that we didn't come to help them out."

"I don't know," Shikamaru admitted with a heavy sigh.

There was a long silence in the room before anyone spoke up again. The first one to break the silence, actually, was Akamaru. A loud yawn escaped from his lips as he shuffled into a comfortable position at Kiba's crossed feet. The little dog's yawn made everyone realize that they still hadn't slept, and the more they thought about that, the more tired they became.

"Why don't we all get some sleep?" Temari said, "No use trying to figure things out when we're tired," She stood up, "We don't have enough beds for all of you…"

"That's ok, we came prepare- oh crap…" Naruto trailed off as he remembered that they had left their sleeping things at the campsite.

Temari chuckled a little at Naruto's idiocy, "We can have a group of shinobi go grab your things."

"You sure it's not too much trouble?" Shikamaru raised an eyebrow.

Temari stifled a laugh, "Come on, a little walk won't kill us."

"Wait," Kankuro caught the 'us', "Are you going Temari?"

"I don't see why not?" She smiled, "Don't worry Kankuro, I'll be fine; besides, you're all so wiped out you can barely stand…" Of course that was an exaggeration, "I'll be back," With that, she walked out the door and ran off to see if she could spare a few shinobi.

"Hope she doesn't run into those guys," Naruto said hopefully.

"Don't freak out about that," Kankuro chuckled, "If she finds them she'll kick their asses."

Who could argue with that?

"Thanks for the help Baki," Temari had just finished making arrangements with her sensei about taking a few ninja out with her to recover the group's things, "We'll be back soon."

"Right; watch yourselves out there," Baki nodded as he saw Temari and her little squadron off.

They dashed along the sands swiftly and quickly, pacing themselves as the hours rolled by, "_Damn, they really ran a long way…"_ Temari thought as they all finally caught sight of the camp; the sleeping gear and doused fire was an obvious mark.

"Alright everyone, let's gather up the stuff and hightail it out of here," Temari announced. The group nodded and quickly gathered everything, putting them in the bags – though they didn't know whose was whose – and throwing them on their backs. Everyone was ready to leave when Temari held out a hand signaling for them to stop.

"Hold up…" She said quietly, "We've got company."

As they all braced themselves for an attack by the now dreaded Mashima brothers, an unexpected sight came. Instead of a ninja, a young man who didn't look older than his late twenties came fumbling out of the brush. Temari looked surprised as her muscles slightly relaxed.

"Please…" He gasped, falling on his knees, "Help… It hurts…"

Temari walked over to the man and knelt down, "What's wrong with you? Are you injured?"

"Please," The man said again with a gasp. He clenched his head, knotting his fingers in his black hair, "My… Head…"

Temari gasped silently as she remembered what Shikamaru had told her of what happened to the Mashima victims; this man matched up the description of someone who was going through that jutsu, "Damn!!"

"Ma'am??" One of the ninja asked.

"You!" Temari pointed to one of the ninja who didn't have anything on his back, "Can you carry him?? We need to get back to the village as soon as possible!"

The ninja she had shot her finger at nodded seriously and quickly heaved the suffering man on his back. With not a second to lose, they all shot off back to the Sand Village.

Temari wasn't sure if this mysterious stranger was from the Sand Village or not; she hadn't seen his face around, so she guessed not. However, he still needed help. And for her, anyone who they could save from the enemy counted. There was no way she would allow any more death in the Sand Village.

"Man, what a nightmare…" Naruto mumbled as he groggily sat up from his sleeping position on the floor, revaluating about his most recent nightmare. A world without ramen; sent shivers right down his spine, "I think I need to get some fresh air…" He clumsily stood up, trying not to step on anyone else that was sleeping on the floor like him, "_They have a staircase to the roof, right?_" He thought as he glanced at the spiral staircase in front of him, "_Might as well…"_ With that thought, he slowly ascended up the stairs, making his way to the roof, where he was surprised to see someone.

"Gaara?" He questioned as a small sliver of wind blew through the air.

Gaara, who had been sitting on the rooftop with his hands on his knees, turned around and glanced at Naruto, "Naruto Uzumaki…" The blond shinobi felt a little uneasy, though he knew Gaara was a friend, "I would think that you'd be tired from your journey."

"Well, you know, just thought I'd come out for some fresh air," Naruto said, walking up and sitting next to Gaara, "Why are you out here Gaara?"

"…" Gaara was silent for a moment. The truth of the whole matter was that he couldn't, no, wouldn't let himself sleep, because of the Shukaku. But, even if he could sleep, he wouldn't want to this night, "… Something doesn't feel right."

"Huh?" Naruto was puzzled by his reaction, "What do you mean?"

"I'm not exactly sure," Gaara admitted in his monotone voice, "But I do know that something is amiss. There's uneasiness around the village."

"Well, that's not really surprising, is it?" Naruto asked, "I mean, your guys' Kazekage's Mansion thing was almost burned down; people are probably freaking out about that."

"… Maybe so," However, Gaara felt that there was more to the story than that. Being around death and blood so long, no, living for it, had made Gaara more aware of things in that genre than most. He did want to change the way he was; he wanted, truth be told, to be more like Naruto… However, that want didn't null his perception of when things were at ease, and when they weren't. And things, he knew, were not at ease. At least, they weren't going to be.

**Author's Note:**

**First of all, sorry for not updating in so long! Been busy! XP**

**Kind of an awkward chapter I suppose, but I wanted this one to be told more about the Sand ninja like Gaara, Temari and Kankuro. Well, mostly Gaara and Temari. This is their entrance chapter, so I wanted to make it kind of focus on them, and what their thoughts on the situation were.**

**Also, I do love writing for Gaara. He's a fun one to make dialogue for. You have to be careful in what you type, because he's never ecstatic like Naruto and never quite depressed all the time like… Oh, I dunno, Kimimaro maybe. But if you type right in the middle, you can hear him say what you type; at least, that's what I do with him. I type something and try to imagine him in the series saying it. It usually works, and I hope I'm keeping him in good enough character. Please tell me if I'm not.**

**Someday I want to write a story in Gaara's point of view or at least a story about him. I think it'd be fun! **


	13. The Curtain Opens

"How's he doing

"How's he doing?" Naruto asked anxiously from outside a room in Sunagakure's Hospital.

Temari sighed, "The doctors are blown away; they've never seen a genjutsu this powerful. But I guess he's coming out of it. At least, that's what they told me."

"Man, this is crazy…" Kiba muttered, "I wonder what that guy's connection with those guys is?"

"We can't know until we can talk to him," Shikamaru said plainly.

Kankuro was sitting down on a bench with his arms folded; eyes cast to the ground. He seemed disturbed by something.

"You alright Kankuro?" Temari asked, going to sit down by him and Gaara, "You seem kind of restless."

"… Something's bothering me," Kankuro answered in a low voice, "How come this guy is getting his mind back so easily?"

"Huh? You mean the genjutsu?" Choji asked.

"Yeah…" Kankuro lifted his eyes from the floor, "We've all pretty much figured out that these guys are smart enough to know that we're going to question this guy once his mind's back to normal."

"So, what you're suggesting is that they set this up too?" Temari asked.

Kankuro nodded, "Yeah, that's what I'm suggesting. It just seems a little too convenient that he would start to come out of the genjutsu soon after he was brought to the Hospital."

"Makes sense I guess…" Naruto mumbled, scratching his head.

"Like I said before, we won't know anything until we talk to this guy," Shikamaru said, "Setup or not, we need information on these guys."

The group murmured in agreement at hearing Shikamaru's statement. Everyone, that is, except for Kankuro. Because of the recent events, he didn't trust this 'victim' at all. Maybe he was just being paranoid- and he acknowledged that fact –but there was always a possibility. This new enemy was crafty.

Everyone sat in silence for a few more minutes before medical personnel clad in white stepped out of the room. The glances of all in the hall were upon them as the shinobi group waited for the news.

"He seems to be fully out of it," One with a low voice said. They all seemed semi-relieved.

"But he's still a little shaky," The other medical ninja warned, "and he may not be able to answer to all of your questions yet."

"Alright," Shikamaru stood up, "So may we see him?"

The two medical shinobi nodded and stepped away from the double doors so the group could pass them and enter the room. It was a large, circular room, with desks lined with beakers and tubes filled with strange liquids. Naruto couldn't look at them for long without thinking of human body parts, so he quickly stopped scanning over the room. He wasn't really fascinated by the human body.

The man was lying down on what looked like a medical table with a pillow and sheet on it. He turned to the group and smiled a tired smile when he saw Temari.

"You, Miss…" He said in a warm voice, "Thank you so much. Without your help, I would never have made it here."

Temari returned his smile, "It was no problem. We're all just glad you're alright."

"Excuse me," Shikamaru said, stepping up to the front, by the table. As the leader of the squad, he would be asking most of the questions, "Would you mind answering a few questions?"

The man's expression grew slightly grimmer, "… Are you the shinobi from Konoha that the doctors told me about?"

Shikamaru, Naruto, Choji, and Kiba all nodded in unison, "Yes," Shikamaru answered, "Would you like us to come in later?"

"No, no…" The man slowly sat up, grunting a little. Shikamaru could relate; after the genjutsu was over, his whole body felt sore. He guessed that this man felt the same way.

Naruto, seeing the man's shakiness, quickly dashed up and took his arm, helping him to sit up. The man smiled at Naruto, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it," Naruto, the ever-friendly shinobi, smiled back at him.

"I'll answer as much as I can," The man said seriously, brushing some black locks out of his face, "I want these… People," He scowled at the idea of calling those monsters people, "gone."

Shikamaru nodded, "Right; we understand. And thank you for your cooperation. But first, do you think we could have your name?"

"Oh!" The man seemed surprised, "Please forgive me; I should've introduced myself first and foremost," He held a hand to his chest lightly, smiling at everyone, "My name is Akio Hiramatsu. It's wonderful meeting you all."

"Mr. Hiramatsu," Shikamaru nodded, addressing him politely, "My name is Shikamaru Nara; I'm the leader of the squad."

"MY name's Naruto Uzumaki!" Naruto said proudly, in his usual fashion.

"I'm Kiba Inuzuka, and this is Akamaru," Kiba placed his palm on Akamaru's head. Akamaru, who was in Kiba's jacket, gave a playful bark.

"Choji Akimichi," Choji said warmly.

"The honor is mine," Akio said, bowing as best as he could from his sitting position, "Oh, and may I know the names of my rescuer and her Sand shinobi friends?" He turned to Temari, Gaara, and Kankuro.

"My name's Temari," Temari said, "Pleased to meet you."

"My name is Gaara of the Desert," Gaara responded politely, with a slight nod of his head.

"I'm Kankuro," Kankuro said plainly; his trust still wasn't all the way placed in this guy, though he could tell that he obviously had beef with the Mashima Clan.

Akio dipped his head, still smiling. Then, he turned his attention back to Shikamaru, "I will answer whatever I can."

"Thank you Mr. Hiramatsu," Shikamaru replied.

Before Shikamaru could say anything else, Akio put a hand up. He chuckled, "Please, you may call me Akio. Mr. Hiramatsu sounds too formal; I'm not royalty," He laughed at that idea.

"Alright then," Shikamaru said with a half-smile, "Akio… Could you explain to us what exactly happened when the Mashima brothers put you under their genjutsu?"

Akio's face hardened, but he spoke, "As you can probably tell from my clothing, I'm not of a wealthy bloodline," Everyone took the liberty to check out his clothes after he had said that. He spoke the truth though; his garments actually looked worn from use, "I lived on the very tip of the Fire Country with my wife Yuki and young son Toboe. We didn't live near any particular village; but that was alright considering that we grew our own crops and had a well. We lived just fine. However…" His expression saddened.

"They came…" Naruto muttered with disgust, accenting 'they'.

"Yes," Akio nodded, "They did… I wasn't aware of whom they were, but I knew it couldn't be anything too good. I had never seen anyone wear masks like they did; except for ninjas of course."

Naruto's mind flashed back to Kakashi when Akio mentioned 'ninja' and 'mask' in the same sentence, "Ah, like Kakashi-sensei…" He said absent-mindedly, not knowing he had said that out loud.

"… Kakashi?" Akio seemed interested at hearing this, "Kakashi Hatake of the Leaf Village?"

Naruto looked surprised, "Huh? You know Kakashi-sensei?"

"Of course!" Akio replied, "He and I go way back; I knew him when he was only a little older than you," He gestured at Naruto, "So, he's a sensei now?" Akio laughed, and a wide smile broke across his face, "Ah, that's good. How is he?" He asked Naruto eagerly.

"He's good," Naruto nodded, "But…" He looked a little nervous, "He's probably still in the Hospital right now."

"The Hospital?" Akio raised an interested eyebrow, "Ah, that shouldn't come as a surprise… He was always going off doing dangerous things. What happened?" He did sound concerned though, despite what he said.

"He was attacked while on a mission," Naruto's blood boiled just thinking of that foul organization and Itachi Uchiha, "By… A group called the Akatsuki…" All of the Leaf shinobi looked a little saddened as they remembered hearing about this. Not only because of the injuries Kakashi had sustained, but by how scared Naruto and Sakura were.

Akio gasped, and his eyes widened, "What?? The Akatsuki attacked him?? Who?"

Naruto was caught a little off guard by Akio's scared reaction, "W-Well…" He stammered, "Kakashi-sensei said he didn't recognize the one who attacked him… Something about explosives and blond hair or something…"

"There were TWO??" Akio seemed winded, like a train had just rammed him.

"Why?" Shikamaru asked quickly, without waiting for Naruto to respond, "Do you… Do you have ties with the Akatsuki?" He grew wary.

"I don't," Akio said grimly, "But the Mashima Clan DOES."

Everyone was shocked; this was news to them. Though the Akatsuki was relatively new news, the Leaf Village's shinobi had gotten tenser since the attack on Kakashi. They knew that the Akatsuki had no 'good' intentions, whatever those were.

"They have ties to the Akatsuki?" Shikamaru murmured, "How?"

"It's not Hideyoshi, Katsuo, or Ren you need to worry about…" Akio said, staring down at his lap momentarily, "It's their leader; the one who pulls all the strings. HE'S the one with affiliation of that dastardly group."

"Leader?" Naruto gulped.

"So… He's even more powerful than the three of them??" Kiba asked, dumbstruck.

Akio nodded regretfully, "Yes, he is. In fact, I've come to believe that they receive a sense of fear from him."

"What are his intentions?" Shikamaru asked firmly.

"That I don't know…" Akio sighed, "I'm sorry. But I do know that their leader is not an actual member of the Akatsuki… Yet. And I do know his name: Saburou Mashima."

"Saburou…" Shikamaru mumbled, trying to find any memory of hearing that name before; nada. There was nothing.

"Is he another brother?" Choji asked.

"No," Akio shook his head, "He's their Father."

A shiver went down everyone's spine all of a sudden. The reason was unknown, but they felt a sense of evil when Akio had said he was the Father. That usually meant that he was the most dangerous… And that he was just playing games with them. But, if his sons were already that strong, they couldn't imagine what he would be like.

"But why did they put their genjutsu on you?" Shikamaru asked.

Akio paused momentarily before continuing on, "Like I said before… I didn't expect them to come to my home… I hadn't seen them ever. However, I did know Saburou. He was my teammate back in the Rain Village…"

Everyone exchanged surprised glances, "Wait a sec Old Man…" Naruto said. Akio smiled at the nickname the kid had given him, "You were a ninja??"

"I was," Akio shrugged.

"What happened?" Kiba asked.

"I thought it through one day…" Akio started, "I was a Chuunin I believe… Anyways, I thought it over and decided that it wasn't my kind of life style. There was too much evil to be dealt with; too much bloodshed. I didn't want to feel like a hired assassin, but that is technically what a ninja is… So, I decided to leave the Rain Village and my life as a ninja, and I wandered around. For quite some time, actually."

"How did you happen to come here?" Temari asked, "We're quite a ways from the Rain Village."

"Like I said," Akio smiled, "It was a long time before I settled down. But, when I came to the Fire Country, I met Yuki. I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. So, together, we found a nice spot on the outskirts of the Fire Country and built a house together. Then we had Toboe. It was a good life," He smiled tiredly, like a piece of him was missing.

"… What happened to Yuki and Toboe?" Choji asked warily.

"Saburou ordered his sons to destroy my life… And everything I held dear," His expression turned weak, "I knew too much of his plans… Even as a young ninja, he was full of deceit. I had tried multiple times to get him to stop his crazy ideas of power… But he never listened…"

"We're so sorry for your loss…" Temari said sadly.

Naruto clenched his fists. He didn't think it possible, but now he hated the Akatsuki, and Saburou, and all those power hungry beasts even more. Why did power always get in the way of everything?! His thoughts angrily flashed back to the reason why Sasuke left for Orochimaru.

"That's alright," Akio smiled weakly in response to Temari's apology.

"So why didn't Saburou try and kill you?" Kiba asked, though it was a grim topic.

"I never forgot my ninja training," Akio said, "I got away, but not before one of those horrible brothers put that confounded genjutsu on me…"

"And that's when Temari found you," Naruto said in realization.

"But why are they targeting the Sand Village??" Kankuro asked, almost in anger.

"I don't know that either," Akio said, "I'm truly sorry."

The pieces, for the group, were finally starting to come together. However, they had no idea where Saburou was in the least. If they wanted to stop the madness in the Sand, they would have to destroy the root of the madness.

Shikamaru had been quiet for a very long time after Akio had talked about Saburou's connection with the Akatsuki. He had his arms crossed and his eyes closed; in other words, he was thinking hard. Choji was the firs to notice this.

"… What's up Shikamaru?" He asked.

Shikamaru unfolded his arms and opened his eyes, "Hey, Naruto…"

"Yeah?" The blond shinobi responded.

"You said that Kakashi-sensei saw two people when that Akatsuki guy attacked him, right?"

"Yeah…"

"Did he ever tell you what the other looked like?"

"Umm…" Naruto scratched his head, "Well, he did say that the other guy didn't do any fighting… Oh! That's right! And he wasn't wearing that weird cloak that they wear, or even a ninja headband!"

"And where did the mission take place?"

"… The Land of Rain," Naruto answered.

Bingo.

Shikamaru and Akio both came to the same realization at the same time.

"That explains a lot then," Shikamaru said.

"What?? Explains what?" Naruto asked in a confused way.

"The other guy that was with the one who attacked Kakashi-sensei," Shikamaru started, "… Was Saburou."

"!?" The group shared in surprised looks and gasps.

"It makes perfect sense," Akio said seriously, "Since Saburou's not a real member of the Akatsuki yet, he wouldn't have the cloak that they all wear…"

"But what about the headband?" Kiba asked, "I thought you said he was your teammate."

"I did," Akio nodded, "But he left the village before I left… Killing four of our Jounin."

"So he would be obviously branded as a Rogue," Shikamaru finished, and Rogue ninja often don't wear their headbands. Either that, or they have a strike through it."

"Wait a second, Naruto…" Akio turned to the blond ninja, "Where exactly in the Rain Village was Kakashi when he was attacked?"

"Uh," Naruto couldn't ever recall Kakashi saying something like that… But he tried to remember all the way back to the mission briefing, "Uh, it was like... Somewhere on the outskirts of the Rain Village I think… Why?"

Akio's face turned stone-hard again, "Then that explains the attack…"

"What does?" Choji asked.

"If you all are ready…" Akio said warily, "I can take you to Saburou's base; a place I know he'll be."

**Author's Note:**

**Wow, I think this is the longest chapter I've written so far in the story… And it was all talking! XD Jeez. Oh well, I think this chapter was needed. This should've explained a lot of the questions you all might've had about the other person who was with Kakashi-sensei's attacker and the story on the Mashima Clan. **

**Hahaha, if any of you readers have ever watched Wolf's Rain, I put in a special little tidbit for you. I named Akio's son Toboe! Yay! XP I was thinking, "Hm… What should I name the son?" I picture a nice little innocent kid, so I immediately thought, "Toboe!!" **

**Anyway, I hope you all still enjoy reading, and I hope you all will continue to read, because we're coming to the climax of this story! **

**Reviews Please! Thank you everyone! :)**


	14. Second Thoughts

"Y-You know where his base is?!" Naruto exclaimed, voicing the excited thoughts he was sure everyone else shared as well.

Akio nodded, "Yes, I do."

"Where?" Shikamaru asked in a semi-warily way; he wanted a general idea before there was any drastic action taken.

"It's… It's in the Land of Rain…" Akio said, looking down at his lap again.

Everyone was surprised, though they all suspected that it would be in the Mashima hometown. What surprised them was the fact that they'd have to GO all the way to the Land of Rain.

"So... Wait a minute…" Kiba said, a tad on the disbelieving side, "You mean that in order to stop this guy, we have to go all the way to the Rain Village??"

Akio nodded, "That's about the size of it."

Everyone was silent for a while. It was true, the Mashima Clan needed to be stopped at all costs, and they would do anything to accomplish that, but the Rain Village was a ways away.

Naruto was the firs to get irritated by the apparent hesitation in the group. He did his signature confused growl, "Well, what are we just standing here for?! Let's go!"

"Someone's sure got his mind made up…" Kiba said, "But yeah, I agree with Naruto: what's there to hesitate about?"

"Well, for one thing, there's the defense of the Sand Village," Shikamaru said. The others were caught off guard; they hadn't thought of that, "It's true that we don't know their real reasons for attacking this village, but it's also true that they could very well attack again…" He turned to the Sand ninja present in the room, "How are the defenses for the Sand Village?"

"When the explosion of the Kazekage's Mansion happened, our defenses were pretty scattered," Temari started, "Our ninja were off on missions," Her expression hardened, "But now we have all of our defenses here, ready 24/7. There's no way the three of them could take all of us on," She said this in a very determined way.

Shikamaru nodded, "Right. That's good," He turned to face the rest of them, "If the Sand ninja are here ready for an attack, we should be able to sneak out to the Rain Village," He sighed, "But what a drag… How long would it take to get there Akio?"

"If we moved quickly, even at night, "The ex-ninja responded inquisitively, "Probably a day. Maybe two."

The Leaf ninja shared sour glances. Moving even at night? Damn, that'd be an energy-consumer.

Akio smirked, seeming to read all of their unenthusiastic expressions, "Don't worry; I know shortcuts to get there. It is my home country after all."

After that, Shikamaru went into plan mode; this time it was a simple one. The Sand village ninja would tighten their defenses heavily, so they'd be ready for anything the Mashima trio could throw at them, and the Leaf ninja would follow Akio's lead to the enemy's hideout. It was decided, though, that Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari would all go with the Leaf shinobi. The reasons were simple ones: this wasn't going to be easy. In fact, it was going to be incredulously hard. Saburou Mashima wasn't going to be an easy target, and they needed all the help they could get. Fortunately for them, the Sand siblings were more than happy to help in the destruction of the horrible clan that had burned their Kazekage's Mansion and murdered their ninja mercilessly.

The rest of that day was for preparations and resting. Everyone would need all of the strength they could muster, so not a second was wasted. If the group that was setting out wasn't packing, they were sleeping.

Needless to say, the next day Naruto was totally fired up: "Alright! Let's get going!! I can't wait to blow that creep Saburou away to next year!!"

"Naruto, would you put a lid on it?" Shikamaru asked tiredly. 5:00 A.M. was WAY too early in the morning for him, "Yelling will just waste energy."

"Well, looks like we're screwed," Kiba laughed.

"Yeah, Naruto yells more than he talks," Choji agreed with a smirk.

"Shut up you two!" Naruto said, yelling out once again.

Akio, however, thought it was very amusing. He laughed heartily, "I don't think it's that bad; it adds morale to a long journey."

"Yeah!! See, Old Man's with me!" Naruto cried out triumphantly.

"Are you always this annoying?" Temari muttered, crossing her arms.

"Whatever, let's just focus on the task at hand here, ok?" Shikamaru asked in an annoyed way, wanting to end the inevitable argument between the group and the blond idiot.

The group nodded and, after checking in with the Sand Village head ninja, all set off at breakneck speed.

To everyone's surprised, Akio was fast; he stayed in the front without much difficulty. Naruto had to sprint to catch up to him.

"You're fast, old man!" He said with a smirk.

Akio chuckled lowly, "Well, I tried to keep in shape even after I stopped my ninja training."

"You seem like you're way more than just 'in shape'!" Naruto exclaimed.

Akio's smile stayed in place, "Thank you Naruto. I do what I can."

Naruto had fallen back a little after his chat with Akio to stay with the others, who were also surprised at the man's speed. However, the situation being as dire as it was, they figured they all had a reason to go faster than usual.

"Yo, Shikamaru, how much longer do we have to go, anyway?" Kiba asked after the sun started setting, a bead of sweat rolling down his face. This was a long, long time to be running nonstop.

"Well, based on what Akio said…" Shikamaru responded, also quite winded, "We still have a little ways to go. If we keep on moving," He stopped for a breath, "we should be able to get there by tomorrow morning…"

Naruto groaned, "Man! This is taking forever!!"

Akio heard the unpleasantness in Naruto's voice, "Sorry about the long trip guys, but we should be able to stop when it gets dark out."

Fortunately, the group's prayers were answered soon when the sun finally went down. Everyone collapsed on the ground as soon as the first star glittered in the sky.

"Thank God!" Choji sighed, lying limply on his back.

"Here here…." Naruto agreed, in the same position as Choji.

After they had camp set up, everyone almost went right to sleep. Everyone, except for Gaara, of course. Akio noticed that Gaara wasn't sleeping and found that curious.

"Gaara…" He said softly, sitting down by the Sand shinobi.

"Yes?" Gaara replied, matching Akio's sound level.

"Why aren't you asleep? Aren't you exhausted??" He was almost disbelieving.

Gaara was slightly hesitant to answer, "I… I have the demon Shukaku within me. I don't like to sleep more than I have to."

"Oh…" Akio said, casting his eyes down. He understood Gaara's implied message in his words, "I see…. Well, that's quite understandable…"

Gaara glanced to the side after he noticed that Akio wasn't leaving, "Is something the matter?" He asked, "You seem anxious…"

"Oh," Akio murmured in realization that he had been twiddling his thumbs, "Just… A little nervous about facing off against Saburou…."

"He's strong. That fear is understandable."

"I don't think you all know what you're doing…" Akio said quietly, almost as if he didn't want Gaara to hear, "Because this… This will really be the mission to end all missions…"

**Author's Note:**

**Sorry for not updating in so long, guys! I just got caught up in a lot of different things (mostly including school) and couldn't update for a while….. **

**That and it takes me a little while to get into the 'mojo' of this story…. I still hope you're all enjoying it though! ^^ **


	15. Let The Infiltration Begin

"Alright… We're near the Land Of Rain!" Akio announced to the group. They had just done almost a whole day of running, and a giant sigh could be heard from most of the group as their most elderly member delivered this news.

"Thank GOD!" Naruto heaved, falling down flat on his back along with Choji and Kiba.

"Heh, you already tired?" Kankuro smirked, wiping away a bead of sweat from his brow and looking down at Naruto.

"Hell no!" Naruto wheezed, lifting his head up.

Kankuro scoffed, "Yeah, right."

"Well, at least we're here, finally…" Kiba breathed, sitting up and petting a panting Akamaru.

"Akio, how much longer is it until we read their location?" Shikamaru asked.

"Not much longer," Akio said slowly, "So I'd wait until we all have our strength back, because this fight isn't going to be easy."

"Yeah," Shikamaru agreed with a nod. He turned to the group, "Alright guys, we're going to take a break for a while to rest and think up a strategy," Everyone looked at Shikamaru intently when his gaze seemed to narrow, "This fight is not going to be easy. And I won't stand for any casualties, you got that?"

The group nodded seriously in agreement. Just the thought of losing anyone… That was too hard to comprehend, to even think about. Shikamaru's words seemed to convince them all to promise themselves: nobody was going to be lost.

………………………………………….

"How're you feeling Kakashi?" Tsunade walked calmly into the Copy Ninja's room holding a clipboard at her sides and dismissing the nurses with a wave of her hand.

"Better, thank you," He responded respectfully with a quick dip of his head.

"I can't believe you," The Hokage sighed, walking over to his bedside, "You've started recovering very fast; much faster than normal."

Kakashi shrugged, "Maybe I was lucky this time," His tone was definitely sarcastic. He changed the subject, "Is there word from the Sand Village yet?"

Tsunade nodded and held up her clipboard, flipping through a page or two, "Yes, they've located the source of all of the gang troubles and are now going to infiltrate the enemy's hideout."

"Pretty quick movement," Kakashi's eyes narrowed, "How do they know where-?"

Tsunade interrupted him, "One of the Sand siblings, Temari, rescued a man named Akio Hiramatsu who knew the enemy's leader previously. He's leading them to the hideout even as we speak."

Kakashi's eyes widened, "Akio… Did you say Akio Hiramatsu??"

"Yes," Tsunade's eyebrows furrowed, "Why? Do you know him?"

"Yes, I do… And that's the problem," Kakashi said, thinking fixedly, "I knew Akio when I was very young… He was a friend of mine. But he can't be in the Sand Village now…"

"Why??" Tsunade questioned again, putting down her clipboard. She had a bad feeling in her stomach.

Kakashi's expression darkened, "Akio Hiramatsu died three years ago in an explosion in the Land of Rain."

"What?" Tsunade's eyes widened. She put a hand to her chin in thought, "I've… I've never heard of this. If there was an explosion in the Land of Rain, I would have known about it." Things like that posed a threat to other countries as well, so the Kages needed to know information like that.

Kakashi's face remained stone-hard, "They never recorded it. The Mizukage didn't want there to be uproar from any of the other countries, so he denied the blast."

"Then how do you know Akio died?"

"Because I was in the backup squad that was sent to aid Akio's team in their search for a group of terrorists… We found no survivors."

Tsunade's face crumpled with frustration as she looked back at the clipboard, "Wait, Kakashi… There's something else here that was proven by them. The other one with that Akatsuki member that attacked you…" She looked up at him bitterly, "He's the one that's in charge of the gang troubles in the Sand Village. And it seems that he's trying to join the Akatsuki as well."

Kakashi's eyes closed in agitated thought as he pondered what this all meant. The same one that was with the Akatsuki on the outskirts of the Land of Rain was the one behind all of the troubles in Sunagakure. We think he's trying to join the Akatsuki… A man that calls himself Akio Hiramatsu appears saying that he knew the enemy… Offers to lead them to the hideout…

Kakashi's eyes snapped open and a loud gasp escaped from his mouth, "Naruto!!!"

…………………………………………………

"Alright, is everyone clear on the plan?" Shikamaru asked again to make sure that everyone was exactly a hundred percent sure of what they were doing.

The group nodded, "We're ready!" Naruto said determinedly, saying everyone's thoughts.

"Good," Shikamaru said. He stood up, followed by the others, "Now, we have to be extremely careful with this one. Don't let your guards down for one second, or else it'll be all over," His gaze turned cold to show them he was completely serious about this.

"What a leader…" Akio muttered as Shikamaru began instructing the group to their positions.

"Yeah, he's really something," Naruto smirked back at Akio, "There's no way we can lose with him."

"Hey Naruto, hurry!" Kiba called, walking over to them.

"Right!" Naruto said anxiously, running over to the others.

"I hope you all know what you're doing," Akio sighed, "It would be horrible if someone didn't make it," His face showed worry.

Kiba looked sure of himself, "Of course we know what we're doing! We're not gonna let anyone die," Kiba noticed something that nobody else seemed to notice about Akio. It surprised him, "Hey Akio… It's probably none of my business, but what happened to your neck?"

Akio's neck all the way up to his jaw seemed to be badly scarred. In fact, part of his ear even seemed to be charred. The old man put a hand on his neck, "I was… In an explosion about three years ago."

"An explosion?" Kiba seemed unbelieving, "Why? I thought you gave up being a ninja by then!"

Akio sighed, "Because I still thought that I could help my village…" And with those grim words, he walked up to the others.

"Wow…" Kiba muttered to his partner, "It's a miracle he survived," Akamaru barked, "Yeah boy, I know. Let's go."

With sweaty palms and thudding heartbeats, the infiltration began.

**Author's Notes:**

**Once again, sorry for not updating! I hope you all will like this chapter! Make sure to read between the lines, as I hope the end will surprise you! **

**Enjoy everyone!**


	16. Three Tunnels

The cave walls were cold and unforgiving as the group slinked their way strategically into the hideout. Shikamaru, positioned right behind Kiba in the front, glanced around to see if they were all moving according to plan.

Gaara was in the middle, to protect them from any ambushes that may occur from the sides or above, and behind him was Akio, who looked as alert and serious as any Jounin Shikamaru had ever seen, holding a kunai firmly. Behind Shikamaru were Choji and then Naruto, and behind Akio were Temari and Kankuro.

The Chuunin let out a silent breath of air, his gaze homing in on their surroundings. It was his job to watch for traps and warn the others if one was spotted. So far so good. He hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary, but he wasn't going to let his guard down until all of the Mashima Clan was apprehended.

Kiba and Akamaru were sniffing the air around them as they walked on, leading the group with silent determination. Something bothered Kiba though, and the minute he caught a whiff of it, he held out his hand, signaling the others to stop.

"What is it?" Shikamaru asked quickly and quietly.

"Three of them; most likely Hideyoshi, Katsuo, and Ren. They're coming right this way," Kiba answered quietly and fiercely. The whole group tensed up behind him.

"Damn," Shikamaru muttered, "They're quick."

He took in the surrounding area. Presently, the group was in a round area in the hideout with a large pillar in the middle that had a little rift big enough for a couple people to stand on it near the top. Past the pillar there lay three separate hallways. Shikamaru did NOT like that.

"Well, well, well…" The mocking voice of Katsuo could be heard before the ninja himself was seen. Choji's brow furrowed immensely when he heard that voice, "Welcome back, meat," He laughed harshly at them.

Everyone's attention was drawn to the rift on the pillar, where Hideyoshi, Katsuo, and Ren all stood, looking down at them almost victoriously. Shikamaru came to the dull but painful sensation that this was their hideout, and they were probably thrilled to have them here.

"Welcome to our humble abode," Hideyoshi said, in an unmistakable low voice.

"The accommodations here are a tad limiting, so I'm afraid we're going to have to lay down some ground rules," Ren said with a smile that almost looked friendly.

"Rules, huh?" Kankuro said, grabbing his Crow and Black Ant off his back. This time he came prepared, "Bull crap."

Katsuo's eyes narrowed on Kankuro, and then found their way to Akio. A glimmer shone in his black eyes, "You," He said with quite obvious distaste.

"Akio Hiramatsu," Hideyoshi said, crossing his arms, "It seems that you've made quite the recovery."

"Expected from an ex-elite shinobi," Ren said with interest.

"Ex-elite??" Naruto said, glancing behind him to get a look at him.

"It looks like he wasn't telling the truth," Temari said, her brow furrowing.

Akio's expression became sour, "I've put that life behind me," He said firmly.

"Right," Katsuo snorted, "Once a killer, always a killer."

"Your presence here makes our rules even more enjoyable," Hideyoshi chuckled, putting a hand to his chin.

The brothers suddenly leapt off the rift and landed swiftly on the ground before them. The squad opposing them tensed up, bringing out their weapons.

"You all seem to be in quite the rush," Hideyoshi laughed. They all dashed behind the pillar and into the three tunnels, "So let's get this game started!!"

"Damn it," Shikamaru cursed again, a bead of sweat running down his face, "This is just what I was afraid of."

"So, what are we waiting for??" Naruto asked feverishly, "Let's go after them!!"

"There's three tunnels," Kiba said, "One of 'em's got to lead to Saburou, right?" He turned to Shikamaru.

Shikamaru addressed the squad, "Right. So, unfortunately," He sighed, growing horribly nostalgic of the Sasuke Retrieval Mission, "We're going to have to split up. Naruto, Kiba, Akio and Gaara," He made eye contact with all the people he mentioned, "You four go after Hideyoshi. You all have a lot of energy and power, and I think you'll be able to take him down."

"Right!" Naruto nodded.

"Can do," Kiba said, with Akamaru yipping determinately from the ground.

"Fine," Gaara said with a slight nod of his head.

"Temari and Kankuro," Shikamaru continued, "You two go after Ren. We haven't seen much of him yet though, so be on your toes."

"Understood," Temari said, sliding a hand over her fan.

"My pleasure," Kankuro said, hoisting his puppets back onto his back and glowering nastily into the tunnel Ren ran into.

"Shikamaru, Katsuo's mine," Choji said with spite.

"I know," Shikamaru said, remembering how angry Choji was after their first run in with the rogues, "So then Choji and I will be going after Katsuo. Is everyone clear of where they'll be heading?"

There was a series of head nods and cracking knuckles.

"Good," Shikamaru turned towards the tunnels and put on his game face, "Let's go."


	17. Shikamaru and Choji VS Katsuo

"Be on your guard Choji."

"Yeah, I know."

Shikamaru tensed up at hearing his good friend's response. Ever since the Mashima brothers had shown themselves, Choji had been almost completely focused on obliterating Katsuo. And Shikamaru could tell.

But that didn't bother him; not in the slightest. No matter what, he and Choji could always work perfectly together.

Still, the Chuunin had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, and it refused to go away. In fact, it intensified when they all separated. Maybe it was just his fear of losing someone here. The last time… Well, he didn't like to remember how badly he had let Choji, Neji, Naruto, and Kiba get hurt. He had convinced himself that it wouldn't happen again, but something in the back of his head worried him.

It was just a drag.

And he couldn't worry about that. Especially when, at the climax of his thoughts, he saw the familiar head of scraggly black hair that had made a fool out of him.

Katsuo turned and heaved a laugh so hard that the cave walls almost shook from it. Shikamaru and Choji didn't budge.

"Oh, this is rich!!" He wiped a tear from his eye as he pivoted fully around to face his enemies, "You two?!" He held a hand up, as if he thought one of them was going to say something, "No, wait wait! 'Revenge', right?" He laughed again, and then suddenly seemed to grow gravely serious.

Katsuo crouched down like a snake, readying himself for a fight. His next words were slow and succinct, "And I thought I was going to get more of a challenge."

"We'll try and get it over with quickly," Shikamaru said icily, also preparing himself, "Besides; I'm sick and tired of hearing your voice."

Katsuo's eyes narrowed dangerously on Shikamaru, "You'd better watch your mouth you bastard," He spat. With a step of his right foot, Katsuo launched forward at Shikamaru.

_BOOM!!!_

Chunks of rock slid down from the cave walls as Katsuo staggered back to his feet. Blood ran down the sides of his face.

"You watch YOUR mouth," Came the voice of Choji sharply as he reversed his Partial Expansion Jutsu, "Or I'll send you flying with ten times more strength than that!!"

"Nice one Choji," Shikamaru smirked.

"You son of a bitch," The rogue sneered venomously at Choji, sputtering in his footsteps as he tried making his way towards them with an outstretched hand. With a grunt, he fell on his face.

"Wait," Shikamaru said quickly, "Choji??" With alarm, he looked at his ally's face.

Choji grunted almost similarly to Katsuo as every muscle in his body looked like it was clenching with pain. Sweat rolled off his face.

"God damn it!" Shikamaru cursed, pulling out a kunai and getting ready to strike in Katsuo's direction.

"I wouldn't attack me if I were you," Came Katsuo's voice from inside of Choji. Shikamaru looked like he saw a ghost, "I have control over your friend's body now. If you attack me, I'll kill him."

The real body of Katsuo stood up, starting to laugh hoarsely. He made eye contact with Shikamaru, grinning from ear to ear. Shikamaru returned his laugh with a glare so cold you could feel it.

"I know, I know," Katsuo said to Shikamaru as he received the glare, "This is a typical hostage situation. But I don't give a damn about creativity. I just want you both dead. And you're first."

Shikamaru raised his kunai up once more, making Katsuo grow frustrated.

"Did you not hear a word I just said you brat??" He yelled, "If you throw that at me-"

"Who said," Said Shikamaru loudly, throwing the kunai sharply, "that I was going to throw it at you?"

"What??" Katsuo was uncomprehending as he and Shikamaru had a stare down, "You jackass! What else could you-" He was interrupted by a large cracking sound from behind him.

With a feeling of dread, he looked up to see the kunai lodged deeply into the area where Choji had slammed earlier, "You… You two… Had it planned…. The whole…" He couldn't finish his sentence as the rocks came tumbling down upon him.

"There's no escaping that," Shikamaru said slowly after a moment had passed, "And you were too single-minded to consider the possibility of a cave-in…"

Choji fell to his behind, panting. Shikamaru immediately rushed over to him, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"You alright Choji??" He asked seriously.

Choji smiled and gave a weary thumbs up to Shikamaru, who smirked in return.

"Sorry about that pal," He said, helping Choji up, "But it really made our plan work out."

"No problem…" Choji said breathlessly, wiping sweat from his face, "But jeez Shikamaru, that was something else…"

Shikamaru frowned, "Yeah, his power was really unusual," He took a breath, "And frightening."

"But we beat him!" Choji said victoriously.

"Yeah. That we did… Now come on. The others need our help."

The feeling in Shikamaru's stomach grew to a solid pain as he and his partner maneuvered through the rest of the tunnel, and he detested it.


	18. Kankuro and Temari VS Ren

"Wind Style: Wind Scythe Jutsu!!" Temari's frustrated voice rang out throughout the tunnel.

"Ooh, almost!" Ren called out playfully as he leapt with inhuman speed down to the floor of the tunnel, "You actually got me a little bit!" He showed his arm, which had a gash going straight across it.

"Damn him!" Kankuro swore under his breath as Ren mocked them. He launched the Black Ant at him with the full intent to kill.

"Whoa!" The rogue jumped out of the way with alarming speed and came straight for Kankuro, "Nice one!"

Kankuro pulled the Ant back anxiously, aiming to tow it back in time to shield Ren's next move; whatever that would be. But Ren was faster, and easily made it to Kankuro before he could defend himself.

"Nice try!" He cooed as he launched onto the Puppet Master, pinning him to the ground with a loud crushing sound as the stone ground beneath them cracked. Kankuro grunted and quickly pulled the Ant away so that it wouldn't slam on top of the both of them.

"Kankuro!" Temari called out. She snarled at Ren, "Get off him you bastard!" Hands were placed strategically on her fan.

Ren's eyes flashed with mild amusement, "That's a pretty powerful weapon you have there…" He said honestly, "But it doesn't have much restraint. You can't attack me now because I have a hold of your comrade."

Temari gnashed her teeth together uncomfortably, the grip on her fan turning her knuckles whiter than snow. He was right.

Ren slid a kunai out of a ninja pouch at his leg and held it just above Kankuro's neck, "Y'know, it didn't have to come down to this," He said, "You guys could have just stayed back in the Sand Village instead of getting yourselves killed. Doesn't that sound like a better deal?"

Kankuro scoffed at him. Ren shrugged.

"It sure sounded better to me," He glanced to the side where the Ant lay in a heap on the ground, "Your jutsu is quite rare and impressive," He admitted, "But you're going to have to get a stronger puppet if you want to defeat me." He giggled playfully.

Kankuro sneered at Ren, "Tch! Shows how much you know," His voice was restrained because of the hold the Rogue had on him.

"Hm?" Ren's eyebrows rose in confusion.

"The Black Ant isn't used for just straight-up combat… You know what it's for?"

Ren's eyebrows lowered again, laughing a little bit, "Well, I suppose it would be nice to learn something about puppets from you before you die," He mused, "What is that hunk of wood for?"

A tight smirk pulled at the edge of Kankuro's lips, and suddenly a large crack split his face open, revealing a dark soulless pair of eyes.

"W-hat-" Ren pulled his kunai back in shocked confusion.

After a final large crack, the Crow was completely revealed, wrapping its arms around its enemy in a crushing grip.

"H-How did...!" Ren couldn't finish his thought because of the puppet crushing his windpipe.

"The Crow is a combat puppet," Kankuro's voice came from behind the Rogue. He strained his neck to glance behind and see Kankuro holding the Black Ant and Crow firmly by their chakra strings, a smug grin on his face, "But the Black Ant is for something else…"

The Ant abruptly opened up, shooting out extremely sharp knives. Ren took in a breathless gasp as an incomprehensible fear washed over him; the fear of death. The Crow threw him vigorously to the Black Ant, giving him no time to get away. The Ant shut instantly when Ren was inside.

"L-Let me out!! What the hell are you-?!" He yelled, pounding furiously on the walls around him.

A look of pure malice spread across Kankuro's face as he spat the word:

"Assassination."

Ren didn't even have time to beg for mercy as Kankuro used the chakra strings to hurl the knives from before into the Black Ant, making their target perfectly. A strident wail echoed across the cave as blood started to pour out of the cracks of the Black Ant.

"Nobody mocks me like that," Kankuro said angrily as the screaming stopped.

Temari sighed and put her fan back onto her back, "You know, you really had me going there for a second you jerk."

"Heh. Sorry about that Temari," He smirked, "But I had to do it so that I could kill the asshole with satisfaction."

"Yeah, well don't do it again," She said. Her expression quickly became composed, "We should get going too."

"I know," Kankuro said seriously, "This guy was pain enough. He was so fast it was hard to keep track of him… And he's not even the strongest."

"Well, we have one down. And we'll get the other ones too; for the sake of the Sand Village."

"Right," He nodded, "They'll be sorry they messed with us."

**Author's Note:**

**Sorry this is so late you guys! I've been really preoccupied lately, plus I was stuck on how to end this chapter. So, I decided to go with the Black Ant dealing the final blow. It seemed to make sense. **

**This chapter has not been one of my best, but I hope you'll all keep on reading and reviewing! Trust me; the chapters will get better as this story comes to a close! **

**QUICK POLL! JUST FOR FUN! ^^**

**Who, in Naruto, do you think would win in a serious fight: Kakashi or Orochimaru?**

**Personally, I like Kakashi-sensei WAAAAAY more (Sorry Steve Blum, I love you, but your character is a pedophile!), but Orochimaru is very strong. Oh, and this fight is Pre-Shippuden!**


	19. Gaara VS Hideyoshi

"Anything yet Kiba?" Naruto whispered anxiously.

Kiba groaned softly, "For the last freaking time, Naruto! Akamaru and I will tell you guys when we catch a whiff of him!"

Naruto blew out some air in a frustrated puff. This was taking too long! Why didn't that freak Hideyoshi just show himself already so they could kick his ass?!

Akio noticed Naruto's aggravated mood and whispered, "We have to be careful here, Naruto. We don't know what they've got planned."

He huffed, "I know, Old Man… But I-" He was suddenly cut off by Kiba throwing out an arm in front of them. Naruto's heart raced in anticipation.

"Well, well… Look who decided to show his ugly face," Kiba growled.

"Now, children, this is no way to treat your host," Hideyoshi's voice came from in front of them as he seemed to step into visibility.

"W-What the hell…?" Naruto hissed, "Did he just appear out of thin air??"

"How very naive of you," Hideyoshi chuckled, "And you're supposed to be a ninja."

"Come over here and I'll wipe that smug grin off your face, you son of a-!" Naruto was cut off by Akio putting a hand on his shoulder.

The man's gaze narrowed as he and Naruto stared at each other, shaking his head slowly, "Remember what I told you."

Naruto gnashed his teeth together, "Fine."

"You of all people are giving him a lecture on being reckless?" Hideyoshi raised an eyebrow in Akio's direction.

"I know my mistakes," Akio replied coolly, "and unlike you beasts, I'm seeking forgiveness," His eyes narrowed on the eldest brother, "by helping these ninja bring you down."

Hideyoshi laughed, a harsh and venomous sound, and scanned the group of people that came apparently to 'bring him down'. He talked between laughs, "What weakness! You could have joined us Akio, and put actual use to your talents and training. But you didn't. A mistake indeed."

"You freaks destroyed my family!" Akio yelled at Hideyoshi, "Why in hell would I join you?! If you thought I would, then you're even more warped than I thought!"

"Like I said, you made a fatal mistake," He reached for a sword at his side, making the group tense for battle, "Which I intend to correct. You'll be the first I cut down."

"Just try," Akio spat, holding his kunai confidently.

Hideyoshi raced forward with alarming speed, sliding his sword out of its sheath and locking on to Akio. As he drew his weapon up to strike, something wrapped around his ankle roughly, throwing him viciously to the wall.

The group of ninja turned around warily, "G-Gaara?" Naruto said.

Gaara drew the hand that he had held out back into the folded position on his chest. Without even looking at them, he said, "You all go ahead."

"What?" Kiba asked, "You sure?"

"Gaara, Hideyoshi is very strong," Akio said, "Are you sure you want us to leave?"

Gaara nodded, "Our objective is to find Saburou Mashima, correct?"

"Well yeah, but-" Naruto started.

"Then we can't all waste time with this fool," Gaara interrupted, "Get going."

Kiba and Naruto looked at each other nervously. They didn't quite like splitting up with their comrades to this extent. But Gaara WAS strong...

"…Fine," Akio breathed, "Good luck."

Gaara nodded.

"Hey Gaara, beat some sense into that asshat for me!" Naruto called out as the three of them ran ahead.

Hideyoshi hoisted himself up with a sneer, "The nerve…" He spat, glaring back at Gaara. The Sand Jounin returned his gaze with a fierce glare.

Hideyoshi noticed the rest of the group running ahead and quickly grabbed for his sword, "Don't think you can get away," He said venomously, running to catch them, "?!"

A giant wall of sand appeared before Hideyoshi, blocking him off from the rest of the group. He dashed his head back in Gaara's direction.

"You're fighting me now…" Gaara said.

"Heh. Is that so?" Hideyoshi stood to face him, "Well, you've certainly does a great job of getting your accomplices away. How very admirable of them…" He laughed, "Leaving one of their own behind!"

Gaara's gaze narrowed, "I wanted to stay behind," His voice was full of conviction, "You're going to pay the price for the destruction of the Sand Village."

A spark flared up in Hideyoshi's eyes, "Oh… Now it sounds like you mean to kill me."

"I do."

Hideyoshi chuckled, swinging his sword around a few times, "Very well then. Killing the Shukaku will definitely be entertaining."

He raced forward, lifting up his sword with little effort, swinging down on Gaara's head. Gaara's sand automatically rose to defend its host as the sword came down.

"Don't think me a pushover just yet," Hideyoshi smirked.

Suddenly, his sword grew exponentially, crushing down on Gaara's sand, seeming to snap it in half.

"?!" Gaara, shocked, managed to jump back before Hideyoshi's now enormous weapon came crushing down on him. He gazed at the sword a moment, "It can change size?"

"Bingo," Hideyoshi lifted the huge sword up and on his shoulders without seeming to break a sweat, "This is quite the powerful sword. It's made of one of the strongest types of folded steel in the world, and in ten years I haven't run into a single opponent who could even leave a scratch on it."

"Hiding behind your weapons is a fool's move," Gaara said, standing back up all the way.

Hideyoshi laughed, "Such imprudent thoughts! It takes great power to obtain this sword's true power, and I have gained that!"

"We'll see," Gaara said, putting his hand in the sign of the Tiger.

Hideyoshi seemed to disappear in a flash, appearing behind Gaara with an incredibly skinny sword and thrusting it towards him.

"?!" Gaara spun around in surprise, his sand barely responding quick enough to shield himself. He lashed out at Hideyoshi, a missile of sand aiming to strike him in the stomach. The Rogue leapt away at the last minute, a piece of the sand scraping his arm.

"Keh," He scoffed, glancing at his arm, "Is this all you've got for me?"

"I wouldn't think me a pushover just yet," Gaara replied, quoting Hideyoshi from before. His hand went back to the sign of the tiger. Sand began to rise behind him like a giant wave, "Sand Tsunami!"

Hideyoshi returned his sword to normal size and prepped himself for the giant wave of sand coming towards him.

Suddenly, Gaara curled his hand up, and the sand concentrated into one long snake, viciously racing towards Hideyoshi's arm. The man was alarmed, but flipped back, preparing to dodge it again if it came his way.

"Impressive. That was quite a trick you pulled," His sword grew to its huge state, and he sliced Gaara's sand in half as he tried to hit his arm again.

"But if you don't strike to kill, how do you think you're going to win this fight?" He laughed.

"You're a fool," Gaara said, lifting up his arm again, "Right now I'm not quite striking to kill."

"Then this brawl will be over as soon as it begun," Hideyoshi rose his sword as he saw Gaara's arm go up again, keeping an eye on his gourd.

The sand from behind Hideyoshi that he cut down rose up, once again concentrating into one snake-like missile. It shot towards Hideyoshi's hand.

"Wha-?!" He turned around just in time to watch the sand drill through his hand with the vicious intensity of a sword.

He screamed out in pain and dropped his sword to the ground, falling to his knees and holding his hand as blood dripped down to the tunnel floor.

"Bastard…" He spat out in a hoarse voice, glaring up at Gaara with such an icy cold stare that he could have frozen over a fire.

"I told you I wasn't striking to kill just yet," Gaara said, his expression remaining the same stoic one that it had been, "But now you can't hold your sword, can you?"

Hideyoshi's eyes were filled with alarm as he looked to his sword and then to the gaping hole in his hand, "W-Why you…!" He hissed.

"There's no such thing as a left-handed swordsman," Gaara clapped his hands together, "So I'm afraid you're out of luck."

Gaara slammed his hands to the ground, and it started to rumble. Hideyoshi struggled to get up, but the force of the quakes pushed him back down again.

"?!?" With a horrified expression on his face, Hideyoshi realized that the ground beneath him was turning into a pit of sand. As he struggled to get out, Gaara locked eyes with him.

"Struggle all you want. There's no escaping your own funeral."

Hideyoshi shook all over as he slowly began to sink down into the ground, "No… No, this can't be!"

"You've lost. Just face facts," Gaara's expression narrowed, "Now die! Giant Sand Burial!"

The huge area of sand around Hideyoshi swirled around him and swallowed he and his sword up in less than a second. He didn't even have time to scream.

Gaara stood up slowly as the sand stopped moving, not even looking at the pit for a second before beginning to walk ahead.

**Author's Note:**

**Hello everyone! So sorry this chapter took so long to write! I had the hardest time deciding what to give Hideyoshi in terms of abilities… **

**But! On a happier note, this chapter was decently long! The longest of the fight chapters yet, I'm sure. **

**This story is, sadly, coming to a close very soon… I hope to surprise you all with the ending!**

**So yeah! Keep reading and reviewing everyone!**

**ANOTHER POLL!**

**Which character, if you read the manga, do you think will die next? I know, it's a morbid question, but everyone's been dying off!!**

**I, actually, think that Sasuke will die soon… I dunno why… I just have this sneaking suspicion….**


	20. The Mission To End All Missions

**What We Have**

**The Final Chapter:**

"**The Mission To End All Missions"**

"Something wrong, Naruto?" Kiba whispered as the three of them made their way down the seemingly endless tunnel.

"No, it's—well…" Naruto seemed unsure of himself, casting his eyes down to the ground.

"What?" Kiba asked, this time actually turning his head to look at his teammate. It sounded like his uneasiness grew when Kiba asked him what was wrong.

Naruto's gaze shifted to the side, as if he was trying to look behind him without having to turn around, "I'm just… wondering about the others is all," He said.

Kiba's eyes softened a little with sympathy as he realized why Naruto was so nervous about being separated from the others for so long. In the Sasuke Retrieval Mission, all of them almost lost their lives when they split up.

"Naruto…" He said, looking back up to the front, "Yeah, I've been thinking about 'em too."

"I understand your concern for them Naruto," Akio said all of a sudden, "But I don't think you should worry about them too much. They're a strong group of kids," He smiled back at the two ninja behind him.

Naruto and Kiba smiled back at him. Kiba turned around to Naruto again, "Yeah, besides, it won't be like last time. Shikamaru said we weren't losing anyone, so we won't."

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, you're right. I don't think they would run into too much trouble with THESE fools anyway," He said, reassuring himself.

Kiba chuckled. Akio asked, "Is he this headstrong all the time?"

"Every day," Kiba smirked, with a collective yip from Akamaru.

Akio's eyes narrowed suddenly as he saw a door dead ahead, "We're here," He said tersely.

Naruto and Kiba took turns glancing at the door in distaste when they knew what Akio meant. They group stopped about ten feet away from the door, with Akio turning to face them. His expression was deadly serious.

"This is it," He said to them, "Always be on your guard boys. Always," His eyes flashed with experience, "You don't know what he's capable of."

Naruto and Kiba nodded in a synchronized fashion. They knew how powerful Saburou Mashima was said to be.

"Now let's go in there and kick his ass already!" Naruto growled, punching his hands together and glaring at the door like he was trying to burn it down with his eyes.

"I agree," Kiba said, cracking his knuckles.

Akio nodded, "Just remember not to do anything reckless. You'll only be digging your own grave."

………………………………………………….

Kakashi's legs worked at a speed that he probably shouldn't have been going in his current condition. He remembered Tsunade's clear directions to him back in the Hospital:

"_You're still healing. Don't push yourself to hard; you'll be no help to Naruto if you're dead. I don't want any heroics here, got it?"_

Truthfully, Kakashi considered it a miracle that the Hokage was letting him out at all; much less accompany a retrieval squad of ANBU to Naruto's location, where it would undoubtedly be extremely dangerous.

But this was also a state of emergency for the Leaf. If the Akatsuki got a hold of Naruto, he would die, and they would gain unimaginable power. Kakashi's eye narrowed. As long as he breathed, he wouldn't let the Akatsuki get their filthy hands on his student.

He just prayed he wasn't already too late.

"Please, Naruto…" He thought as his body ached from all the running he'd been doing, "Please still be alive! I'm almost there!"

………………………………………………………..

Akio entered the room first, slowly, followed by the two boys. A throne-looking object sat at the head of the stone room, above a small flight of stairs. But…

There was no one in it. In fact, there was no one in the entire room.

Kiba felt a sinking sensation in his stomach as his eyes darted around the room. He didn't like this at all. This room was too open, too empty. Something wasn't right. Of course it was Naruto who spoke up first out of frustration.

"Where the hell are you Saburou?! Come out!!" He yelled in his usual fashion, stepping forward and looking all over the room with his fists clenched.

Akamaru jumped out of Kiba's coat and sniffed the ground diligently, looking back to his master and whining sadly. Kiba grunted in displeasure.

"What is it? Where is he?" Naruto asked him feverishly.

Kiba shook his head, "Not here. Akamaru couldn't smell the Mashima clan at all."

Unexpectedly, the cave started to rumble. The Leaf shinobi darted theirs heads back to the door to see a wall of stone cover it up all the way. Akio stood in front of the door with his hands in the sign of the snake.

"O-Old man?" Naruto looked at him with the utmost confusion on his face.

Kiba's gaze narrowed suspiciously, "What the hell are you doing, Akio?" He asked fiercely.

Akio slid his hands apart and started to walk ahead of them, stopping at the foot of the stairs, "It can't be helped," He said, looking up at the throne, "You two are the contestants on the final round of this show… I thought I'd make it interesting for you. Because now the tables have turned in my favor," One hand went into the sign of the tiger, and with a gust of wind, Akio's appearance completely changed. His short black shaggy hair was replaced with long tied up black hair, and even his skin pigment was different!

He looked back at them with an arrogant grin and piercing black eyes that could douse an inferno in a second, "So let's make it fun now, shall we?"

Naruto and Kiba's mouths fell open in shock. Naruto's teeth gnashed together in an instant, "What the hell is this Old Man?!" He yelled.

Akamaru barked up at Kiba once, then proceeded to growl fiercely at Akio, "I knew it," Kiba hissed, "Naruto, this guy's really Saburou!"

"What??" Naruto's eyes widened for the third time as he looked back up at who he thought was Akio Hiramatsu, "N-No way… There's just no way!" His brow furrowed, "That Old Man… He was so nice! There's no way he could really be-"

"In the ninja world, if you always reveal your intentions, plans don't work out so well… But in this case, mine has worked out splendidly!" Saburou grimaced.

"How could Akamaru not recognize your scent…?" Kiba said, baffled.

"Naïve, aren't you?" Saburou scoffed, "It wasn't hard," He turned all the way around to face them, "When you're as powerful as I am, hiding your scent isn't difficult," He smirked at them mockingly.

"Bastard," Kiba said, crouching to an attack position, "You were just using us!"

"Why…?" Naruto first spoke in a whisper, but then threw his head up and yelled, "Why?! Why attack the Sand Village?! Why kill those innocent people?!" His fists clenched even tighter.

"Why? Saburou resisted the urge to laugh, "For you, of course."

"W… What??" Naruto said dryly, blinking in confusion, "Me…?"

……………………………………………….

"Kakashi," An ANBU member kept his pace with the now weary Jounin as they came ever closer to their target location.

"What is it Raven?" Kakashi asked, addressing the Black Ops member accordingly.

"I realize our objective of course," Raven said, "But something's been bothering me… Why would they attack the Sand to get to Naruto?"

"Naruto wasn't always their objective," Kakashi explained, "Don't forget: Saburou Mashima isn't in the Akatsuki yet. He's still trying to get in, or at least that's what I gather by the fact that he did not have an Akatsuki cloak on when I encountered him.

Raven nodded in understanding and waited for Kakashi to continue.

"The Sand Village held the nearest Jinchuuriki: Gaara. So it made sense for them to go there and try their luck with capturing him."

"I see... So the killings were just ways to try and draw Gaara out so they could apprehend him," Raven replied.

"Right," Kakashi nodded, "However, when Shikamaru's squad came to the Sand and they realized Naruto was the one who held the Kyuubi, they automatically changed their plans to accommodate for him."

"… Isn't the Nine-Tails the most powerful of all the Tailed Beasts?"

"Yes," Kakashi said ruefully, "Unfortunately, that means Naruto is a prime target to anyone in contact with the Akatsuki."

"That makes sense," Raven said, "I'm glad we're almost there; this could be the end for many villages if they capture Naruto."

"We're not going to let that happen," Kakashi said, feeling himself go faster despite his weariness.

"Of course," Raven nodded. He glanced at Kakashi, realizing that the man had started to pant rather heavily, "Kakashi, are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine," The Copy Ninja replied quickly without taking into consideration his exhausted state, "We need to hurry."

"… Right," Raven said, remembering how much Kakashi cared for his students. His health didn't matter to him if they were in danger, "_Heh… You haven't changed at all, have you Captain?_" He thought, smiling behind his mask.

…………………………………………………..

Naruto was always thought of as a thick-headed kid who didn't catch on to things very quickly. But when Saburou said he attacked the Sand Village for HIM, he knew exactly what was going on.

"The Akatsuki… No…" He spat, glaring at Saburou with as much hatred as he could muster, "A whole village, just to get to me… You're a bastard!!"

"Maybe," Saburou shrugged off Naruto's vicious insult, "But it won't matter as long as you're trapped in the confines of this room. You can't go anywhere."

"Naruto, what the hell is going on??" Kiba asked the blond shinobi angrily, "What is talking about; attacking the village 'for you'?!" Kiba, not knowing about the demon fox in Naruto, didn't understand why Naruto got so upset and responded so quickly to Saburou's statement. Then something dawned on him.

"Wait—He's not trying to…?!" His eyes dashed from Naruto to Saburou as his mind reveled around the possibility that Saburou was going to try and _kill_ Naruto.

"I don't expect you to understand, Kiba," Saburou almost sneered his name, "This is between Naruto and me. Though I will have to dispatch you if you want to interfere."

"Like hell!" Kiba snarled, "What do you take me for?!"

"So I guess this means you plan to interfere?" He smirked insanely.

"And if you think I'm going to make this easy for you, you should have picked someone else to screw with!" Naruto shouted, "I'm gonna make you pay for what you've done to the Sand Village and my friends!"

"Akamaru," Kiba said quickly. The white puppy barked in acknowledgement and jumped on Kiba's back as he crouched down and put his hands in the tiger sign, "Man-Beast Mimicry!"

Akamaru turned into a copy of Kiba in less than a second, and the two of them sprung forward to attack, "Fang Over Fang!!"

A spinning vortex rushed to Saburou with deadly intent. The older ninja was surprised, but not off guard as he lifted a wall of rock to protect himself from the attack. Kiba and Akamaru jumped back after a minute, managing only to severely crack Saburou's wall.

"You're going to have to try harder than that!" He scoffed, shattering the already weak stone wall.

"Rasengan!!" Naruto's loud voice echoed from behind Saburou as the young ninja came down on him with his most powerful attack.

"?!" Saburou, alarmed, was able to grab Naruto's arm and throw him to the wall, just barely escaping with just a scratch on his arm.

"Naruto, you okay?" Kiba started to run over to his friend in alarm, Akamaru at his side.

"Not so fast Mr. Inuzuka," Saburou did three hand sign, and a wall of earth rose up and knocked Kiba back with a grunt.

"Kiba!" Naruto called out to him as he got his footing back.

"Worry about yourself, Naruto," Saburou said, that same insane smirk plastered on his face.

"You damn jerk," Naruto sneered, getting into a fighting stance.

"It'll be better for you to just not try and fight me," He held up his hand, letting a long streak of chakra envelope it.

"_That technique… It's just like Kabuto's…!_" Naruto thought, thinking back to the fight he had with the silver-haired freak. The blades of chakra he had were extremely deadly, and were even enough to inhibit Tsunade, _"Is this guy a Medical Ninja too??_"

A kunai swiftly flew in from the side, aimed right for Saburou's hand. Quickly he jumped back, the chakra fading away. His spiteful glare found its way toward the one who threw the weapon.

Kiba glared right back at him, spitting on the ground in front of him. Saburou's eyebrow twitched, "Why you-"

Suddenly a fist came flying from the back and nailed Saburou, sending him skipping across the ground. Naruto pulled back his fist, and then flashed a smile at Kiba.

"Thanks."

"No problem," Kiba replied with a smirk, "Seeing that guy flying just made my day anyway."

Saburou sat up, a quite rage engulfing him and a tight frown pulled across his features. With inhuman speed, he raced towards Naruto, the chakra blade swallowing his hand once more.

"Naruto!" Kiba cried out in panic as he saw Saburou shoot forward to Naruto, "Damn it!" Watch out!" His legs moved as fast as they could as he sped to his comrade.

Naruto barely had time to blink as Saburou ran for him with the intent to kill. No matter where he tried to run, he knew there would be no time left for him. He was going to-!

At the last second, Naruto felt himself get shoved down to the ground forcefully, the breath knocked out of him. He took in a gasp of breath after he hit the ground and immediately rolled around to his knees. His eyes widened.

Kiba stood in front of him, Saburou standing less than an inch away from him. With a look of pure terror on his face, Naruto saw a splatter of blood on the ground and on Saburou's face… And realized it was Kiba's.

"No…" He whispered, not finding his voice as he stared blankly at the back of his partner, gazing emptily at the tip of the chakra blade that was protruding out of his back. Akamaru shrieked in horror as he saw his master get hit.

"Damn it," With a pained expression on his face, Saburou pulled his arm out of Kiba's stomach and staggered back, blood covering his body in splotches.

Kiba fell backwards breathlessly at the force of the weapon being pulled out of him.

"Kiba!!!" Naruto cried out, lunging forward and grabbing him before he hit the ground. His fingers were already becoming sticky with blood, "Kiba! Kiba!! Talk to me! Say something! Please!" His voice was trembling, and he sounded on the verge of tears.

Kiba's eyes, though already open, showed little life even as he let out a small groan. Naruto felt a chill go through him, "Kiba!" He blinked back tears, "Why did you…. Why did you do that?!"

"…It was…. Just… what my body.... did…" Kiba wheezed, coughing up drop of blood.

Naruto cringed at the sound, "J-Just hold on! You're gonna be okay! We'll go back soon! Please, just hang on!" He seemed to ramble on, actually just trying to assure himself that Kiba _wasn't_ dying.

Akamaru nudged Kiba's arm affectionately, whining sorrowfully and scrunching up his nose at the smell of his brethren's blood.

"Akamaru…" Kiba's lips curved just slightly as he shakily lifted his hand and put it on his best friend's head, "…. Good boy…" Akamaru continued to moan sadly.

"Kiba…." A tear fell down Naruto's face, "I'm sorry… This is… This is all my fault!"

Kiba looked at Naruto sadly, "No…. You're wrong… It was… My decision… Sorry I… Won't be able… To go back…"

Naruto's eyes widened, "No! Don't talk like that! I told you you're going to be okay!! Please, d-don't say that…"

"….I'm…. I'm sorry…" Kiba whispered as his eyes closed and the last bit of air in his lungs left him.

Naruto froze, "K-Kiba?! Kiba!!?" He shook him a few times, tears now streaming freely down his cheeks, Kiba!!!!!!"

"Damn that… Brat…" Saburou puffed tiredly. That jutsu had taken its toll quite quickly, and he knew that he wouldn't be able to stay for much longer before he was in trouble.

As soon as Naruto heard Saburou's voice, his sobs stopped in an instant, "You…." He spat with so much venom that it shook Saburou to the core. Naruto held Kiba tightly as he slowly lifted his head.

His tear-streaked face showed a monstrous ferocity, the tears sizzling off his face in the red-hot chakra of the Kyuubi. In an instant, Naruto had laid Kiba down and leapt forward towards Saburou with vicious intent, roaring like an animal.

"?!" The man almost couldn't get away in time, and he could even feel the heat of the Fox's chakra on him as Naruto drew nearer, "_I've gotta get out of here!_" He thought frantically, dashing over to Kiba's body. Akamaru's hair stood up on end as he jumped up and clamped his teeth down on Saburou's shoulder.

He screamed sharply, grabbing the dog and ripping him away from his shoulder, tearing a good portion of his skin and clothing in the process. Akamaru flew, slamming into a wall.

It happened in a second. Before Naruto had time to attack again, Saburou was gone…. And so was Kiba. Naruto sank to his knees and screamed horribly, causing the red chakra to explode around him.

After it faded away, Naruto stared lifelessly at the pool of blood that was all Kiba left behind. His hands shook as he gripped the ground, fresh tears starting to streak down his face in rapid succession.

He wailed out loudly, mourning over what was lost, what he had, and what he would never see again. Akamaru cried out with a howl that could pierce the night sky as he sat at his master's only remains.

Yes, what they had… For they would never have it again.

"KIBAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

**~End~**


	21. Epilogue

**What We Have**

** The Epilogue:**

** "Aftermath"**

The gathering for Kiba's funeral was alarmingly large for a ninja who was just a Genin. However, every one of the current Genin, as well as the Inuzuka, Aburame, Akimichi, and Nara clans were present for one last goodbye to the young ninja.

Such a number of tears were shed that Naruto could barely stand to be there. He doubted if anyone standing clad in black at the Memorial Stone could. Just about every time the Hokage would start to talk about the heroic efforts of Kiba Inuzuka, an awful sob could be heard from his mother and sister. No one said a word, and no one even tried to offer comfort at the time. The best thing would be to just…

Let them cry. Let them get it all out. Though no amount of sobbing could ever bring their son and brother back.

Akamaru sat with them; perfectly still as if a stone statue, as if- without Kiba –he couldn't function at all. He kept his gaze on the Memorial Stone throughout the entire ceremony.

Naruto stared at the Stone with dark bags under his eyes and dull eyes that had already shed so many tears he wasn't sure if he could cry anymore. Now he resorted to feeling a large lump swell its way up to his throat, making him _want_ to let tears spill out, but not letting him.

Everyone got a white flower, each taking turns at placing them in front of the Memorial Stone as a way to honor Kiba's memory. Seeing each and every one of the distraught, sorrowful, and pained expression on everyone's faces, was enough to make Naruto let the heavy weight of guilt to land on him with enough force to push the air out of his lungs. He barely realized when it was his own turn to place his flower by the Memorial Stone.

After the funeral, Naruto and the Inuzukas were the last to leave. The rest of Squad 8 had stayed behind to comfort Hana and her mother and be with them in their time of mourning. Naruto saw the tear streaks that had raced down Kurenai and Hinata's faces, and even noticed that Shino had just one tear drip off his chin before he narrowed his gaze to keep from crying even more. Even he wasn't able to suppress a little bit of grief though; Naruto knew that.

Seeing Naruto's absolutely lifeless face, Hinata walked up to him, rubbing tears out of her eyes before she spoke to her crush in little more than a whisper:

"Naruto…" Her usually mousey voice was only a shadow of its former self, "N-Nobody… B-Blames you…" Fresh tears started to fall down her face. Naruto looked back at her, his face contorting as if he was trying to bring all of her pain onto himself. He suddenly looked away.

"… It's still my fault…" He whispered hoarsely.

Hinata almost looked surprised, though there was so much sorrow on her face it was hard to tell, "N-Naruto…" The Hyuga suddenly started to sob heavily, sinking to her knees and shoving her face in her hands, "I-I…" She choked out, "I d-don't… Know what… T-To say to t-them…!!"

Naruto looked surprised at first, and then his expression clouded back over with sadness. He knelt down by her after looking back up at the suffering Inuzukas, "I… I don't know either Hinata…" He replied croakily, "I really don't…" He looked back up at the Memorial Stone and the mound of flowers in front of it, gulping back tears he thought he had already cried. His vision climbed up to the stone itself, finding a newly carved name engraved in it:

"Kiba Inuzuka".

The tears were let loose in a flood.

**Author's Note:**

**Hey guys! Sure has been a while, huh? Sorry about that…. But the ending was really mean of me, and I wanted something else to kind of say what happened afterwards… So I knew this was going to be a TOTALLY angsty epilogue- which it really was. But don't worry:**

**I'M PLANNING A SEQUEL!!**

**Yes, that's right, a sequel! I probably won't start on it, though, until I finish some other projects like "Cursed" and "Lyrics of Life." So, yeah… Hope you liked this short little angst festival! **


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